The Supreme Court Reaffirms the Application of Foreign Law to Dual-Listed Companies
On October 16, 2018, the Supreme Court (Honorable Justices Solberg, Groskopf and Baron) issued a decision in Civil Appeal 2889/18 Cohen v. Tower Semiconductor Ltd. et al. (in which our firm represented Tower Semiconductor (“Tower”), its officers and its board members, the Respondents), confirming that the liability for breaches of reporting obligations in the secondary market by dual-listed companies is governed by the securities laws of the foreign trading jurisdiction.
The appeal was filed with respect to the Tel Aviv District Court’s (Economic Division, The Honorable Judge Kabub) ruling in favor of Tower. In his ruling (discussed in our November 2017 legal update), Judge Kabub provided an answer to the fundamental question: What law governs a dual-listed company with respect to liability for breaches of the company’s ongoing reporting obligations in the secondary market? After a comprehensive and extensive analysis, Judge Kabub held that the securities laws of the foreign jurisdiction in which the company’s shares are traded govern this issue.
Furthermore, Judge Kebub held that the governing law with respect to liability of the dual-listed company’s external auditors is also the law of the foreign jurisdiction in which the company’s shares are traded.
After oral arguments at the Supreme Court on October 4, 2018, the Justices suggested that the Appellants withdraw their appeal. The Appellants subsequently adopted this suggestion, and following this withdrawal the Supreme Court rendered its decision.
The key-points of the Court’s decision are as follows:
Click here to read the update in PDF format
Update written by: Adv. Jana Rabinovich, Daniel Fishelovich
For further information, please contact:
Adv. Dr. Gil Orion +972-3-6944142 gorion@fbclawyers.com
Adv. Jana Rabinovich +972-3-6069699 jrabinovich@fbclawyers.com