Tel Aviv Court Orders Grandson to Return Nearly $790,000 to Late Grandfather’s Estate

The Tel Aviv-Yafo Magistrate’s Court ruled in a family financial dispute involving 788,444 shekels between three siblings and their nephew over 1.2 million shekels transferred by their late grandfather to the nephew shortly before his death. The case centered on whether the funds, transferred in January 2023, were a gift or a loan. The grandfather’s company took a bank loan of 1.2 million shekels, which was immediately transferred to the grandfather’s personal account and then to the nephew’s account on the same day. The grandfather died about two months later, and his will made no mention of a loan to the nephew.

The siblings, represented by the law firm Shelesinger Almogi & Co., claimed the money was a loan that must be repaid to the estate. The nephew argued it was a gift, citing an email he sent to his tax advisor stating he had received a gift. However, Judge Avi Cohen referenced a Supreme Court precedent that the "presumption of a gift" applies only in close dependent relationships like parent-child, which was not proven here. The nephew bore the burden of proof but failed to provide any document from the grandfather confirming the gift. The tax advisor’s email was written solely by the nephew without the grandfather’s confirmation. Additionally, the nephew’s wife, who was involved in receiving the money, was not called to testify, and contradictions were found between the nephew’s claim of financial hardship and his significant assets.

The judge also noted suspicious financial transfers through multiple accounts on the same day. Despite the siblings’ case lacking unequivocal objective evidence, the court found a balanced doubt and ruled the nephew must return 788,444 shekels to the estate, plus legal fees totaling 50,000 shekels. The siblings, as heirs, received their proportional share of the repayment. Attorney Oded Shelesinger, representing the siblings, emphasized the ruling reinforces the protection of estates against unproven oral claims of gifts, requiring solid evidence from those alleging they received money as gifts from the deceased.