A leading British arbitrator will speak in Tel Aviv on Thursday at a seminar organized by the Israel British Law Association. Dr. Julian Lew, head of the School of International Arbitration at Queen Mary, University of London, will discuss international arbitration procedures at IBLA's first public event in three years. The evening seminar is aimed at local commercial lawyers, according to Jennifer Janes, chair and founder of IBLA. The association, which brings together Israeli lawyers with links to the UK, was founded in 2002. For more information on the seminar, send an e-mail to dsfinn@netvision.net.il. (Charlotte Hall?)
A higher number of train stops in a city increases the value of apartments in the area, according to a study conducted by Ronit Yahav-Sharer of Haifa University's economics department. "These results may be used as an index for feasibility testing of additional investments in train service" said Yahav-Sharer, who was advised by Professor Benjamin Bental. The research examined the number of train stops in Netanya and Rehovot and real estate prices in the area during 1992-2002. According to the model developed by Yahav-Sharer, every train stop in added NIS 2,389 to the value of a Netanya apartment and NIS 2,300 to a Rehovot apartment. (Sharon Kedmi)
The Tel Aviv District Court has been asked to approve the claims of three petitions filed against the country's three cellular companies as class action suits. Filed by subscribers of the defendants, the claims totaling NIS 100 million allege that the companies have debited VAT to customers in Eilat in violation of the law. The claimants said that had they been aware that the sums were being billed, they would have chosen to use the services of other companies. In addition, they said the defendants breached the law that forbids misleading and exploiting consumers, as well as recording an unlawful gain when billing VAT. The NIS 100 million figure is based on an estimated average loss of NIS 6,600 to some 15,000 customers. (Carmel Ben-Zur)
