On Monday, the High Court of Justice rejected the petitions against the "Jordan Valley Regulation," which Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked announced two years ago to prevent abuse by Arab or foreign workers against farmers in the Jordan Valley.
"Successful claims" have become a method that farmers in the Jordan Valley have suffered for years. Time after time farmers found themselves being sued by Arabs from Judea and Samaria who claimed that their salaries were not paid by their Israeli employers, without any evidence. Since a court fee does not exist in the Labor Court and it is very difficult to collect court costs from the defendants residing in Areas A and B, such claims have become worthwhile.
According to the regulations, which were revealed two years ago for the first time by Arutz Sheva, a plaintiff who is not a resident of Israel will be required to deposit a guarantee to pay the defendant's legal expenses, so that they will be transferred to the defendant. The exceptions are whether the plaintiff first showed evidence to prove his claim or that he showed that the defendant will be able to pay his expenses from him if the claim is rejected or if the judge of the court or the Registrar sees that the plaintiff is exempted for special reasons that will be recorded.
After the regulations were approved, a number of extreme leftist organizations, including Adalah, Kav LaOved and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, petitioned against them. Today, a ruling was issued rejecting the petition and imposing on the petitioners expenses in the amount of NIS 10,000.
Justice Ofer Groskopf ruled that "the right of access to the courts, in whose name the petition was filed, reflects a fundamental value in the Israeli legal system, but alongside this value there are important considerations that must not be ignored: the legitimate interest of the defendant not to be concerned with unjustified claims and the systemic consideration of preventing the flooding courts with unnecessary legal proceedings."
"The regulations we are dealing with are part of a secondary legislation whose purpose is to create deterrence from the filing of false proceedings, in light of the enormous burden placed on the court system and the fear of abuse of this reality. While maintaining a system of balances that is within the realm of reasonableness," the judge concluded.