Judge Dismisses Class Action Over Spam Texts, Criticizes Plaintiff

A Rishon LeZion Magistrate's Court judge has dismissed a NIS 2 million class-action lawsuit seeking damages for alleged unsolicited text messages, heavily criticizing the plaintiff, Yakov Shaul, for acting in extreme bad faith and withholding information. Judge Adi Avronin stated that Shaul's actions demonstrated a pattern of behavior aimed at extorting money from small businesses.

The lawsuit was filed against Haredi fashion designer Mazal Hazut, with Shaul claiming she sent him voice messages without his consent and without an opt-out mechanism. He alleged this was a common practice by Hazut targeting Haredi women, causing non-monetary damages of NIS 100 per message. Hazut countered that Shaul and his lawyer were abusing legal proceedings to extort funds, asserting that Shaul had acquired a phone number previously belonging to MK Moshe Abutbul (Shas), a client who had consented to receive messages.

Abutbul testified that his wife or daughters might have received messages on his phone, as their kosher phones do not allow for such messages. Shaul's wife, Sarit Shaul, denied receiving any messages and stated her husband was trying to stop spam in the Haredi sector. Shaul himself admitted he hadn't listened to Hazut's messages in full, believing such lawsuits were the only way to combat spam.

Judge Avronin accepted Hazut's version regarding Abutbul's phone, noting that consent was given by the previous holder and Hazut was unaware of the number's transfer. The judge found Shaul failed to prove the existence of a harmed group and that his own sister, who submitted an affidavit claiming to have received messages, did not appear for cross-examination. Furthermore, Avronin pointed out that Shaul submitted only a partial transcript of a message, omitting the opt-out information, and had filed seven class-action and five regular lawsuits within a year, nine of which were spam-related.

Avronin also criticized Shaul's evasive testimony, stating that his unwillingness to reveal information that could undermine his case was sufficient grounds for dismissal. Shaul was ordered to pay NIS 10,000 in costs, partly due to procedural shortcomings by Hazut, who initially lacked representation and later filed new pleadings that delayed the proceedings. Hazut was represented by attorney Rotem Darwish.