Tel Aviv Court Corrects Will, Grants Nephew Exclusive Rights to Family Home

The Tel Aviv-Jaffa Family Court ruled last week to amend the will of a deceased uncle, who left his estate to his nephews and a niece's son. Judge Sagit Ofek determined that a mistake in the late will required correction, awarding the exclusive ownership of a house in Nes Ziona to one nephew, referred to as Lior, despite the will's instruction for equal division among the heirs.

The dispute arose after the uncle, who had no children, wrote a will bequeathing all his assets equally to four nephews and a niece's son. However, Lior contested this, citing an earlier will from 20 years prior that left him the Nes Ziona property exclusively. Judge Ofek found that the uncle and Lior shared a close "father-son" relationship, with Lior living in the Nes Ziona home rent-free and having invested about one million shekels in renovations, indicating the uncle's intent to leave the property solely to him.

The court also noted that the lawyer who drafted the later will lacked experience and used a template, and that the uncle may not have fully understood the implications due to language barriers. Although the heirs initially negotiated a division granting Lior the house, they retracted at the last moment. The judge criticized the opposing nieces for knowingly exploiting the will's error for personal gain and ordered them to pay 60,000 shekels in legal fees to Lior. One of the plaintiffs is Lior's sister, who will be responsible for part of the payment under the ruling.