Limitation Law, 5718-1958

In this Law –

"court" means any judicial authority or arbitrator, excluding a religious court;

"proceedings" means civil proceedings before a court;

"real property" means land of any kind and any right or benefit in land and anything permanently affixed to land and any right or benefit therein that requires registration in the land registers.

A claim for the enforcement of any right is subject to limitation, and if proceedings were instituted on a claim that has been barred by limitation and the defendant raised a plea of limitation, the court shall not entertain the proceedings; however, limitation alone shall not extinguish the right itself.

A plea of limitation shall not be entertained unless the defendant raised it at the first opportunity after the institution of the proceedings.

In proceedings on a claim that has not been barred by limitation, or that has been so barred but against which no plea of limitation has been raised, a plea of limitation shall not be heard against a set-off in the same proceedings nor against a counterclaim, where the counterclaim and the claim in those proceedings share the same subject matter or arise from the same circumstances.

The period within which a claim on which no proceedings have been instituted becomes barred by limitation (hereinafter – the limitation period) is –

The limitation period commences on the day on which the cause of action arose.

The running of the limitation period of a claim shall be suspended for as long as the plaintiff is prevented from instituting proceedings by reason of the defendant, or a person acting on the defendant's behalf, knowingly misleading the plaintiff, exercising force against the plaintiff, threatening the plaintiff, or exploiting the plaintiff's distress; for this purpose, "misleading" includes misleading by way of the knowing non-disclosure of any of the facts constituting the cause of action.

If the facts constituting the cause of action were concealed from the plaintiff for reasons that were not dependent on the plaintiff and that the plaintiff could not have prevented even with reasonable diligence, the limitation period shall commence on the day on which those facts became known to the plaintiff.

If the defendant acknowledged, in writing or before a court, whether within the limitation period or after it, the existence of the plaintiff's right, the limitation period shall commence from the day of the acknowledgement; and an act that constitutes partial performance of the right shall be treated as an acknowledgement for the purposes of this Section.

In this Section, "acknowledgement" excludes an acknowledgement that was accompanied by a plea of limitation.

In calculating the limitation period, the time during which the plaintiff had not yet attained the age of eighteen years shall not be counted.

In calculating the limitation period, the time during which the plaintiff was incapable of managing the plaintiff's own affairs by reason of a mental or intellectual impairment, whether temporary or permanent, and had no guardian shall not be counted; if the plaintiff had a guardian, the time during which the facts constituting the cause of action had not yet become known to the guardian shall not be counted.

In calculating the limitation period, the time during which the plaintiff was the guardian of the defendant or was subject to the defendant's guardianship shall not be counted.

In calculating the limitation period, the time during which the parties to the proceedings were married to each other shall not be counted; in a marriage that was lawfully declared void ab initio or that was lawfully annulled, the parties to the proceedings shall, for the purposes of this Section, be deemed to have been married to each other until the day of the declaration or until the day of the annulment.

In calculating the limitation period, the time during which one of the parties to the proceedings was present in the territory of a state in which, by reason of the conditions to which that party was subject there or by reason of the relations prevailing between that state and the State of Israel, either that party or the other party to the proceedings was unable to conduct the legal proceedings shall not be counted.

In this Section –

"territory of a state" includes any protectorate and any territory actually occupied by a state;

"party to the proceedings" – in relation to property conveyed to the Custodian of Absentees' Property, to the Custodian of German Property or to the Custodian of Enemy Property – means the person who was the owner of that property immediately before the conveyance, and in relation to property administered by the General Guardian – the owner of the property.

If proceedings were instituted before a court, including a religious court, and the proceedings were dismissed in a manner that did not preclude the plaintiff from instituting new proceedings on the same cause of action, the time between the institution of the proceedings and their dismissal shall not be counted in the limitation period.

If the running of the limitation period was suspended as referred to in sections 10 and 12 to 15, the period shall not expire before at least one year has elapsed from the day on which the suspension ceased; if the running of the period was suspended as referred to in section 11 – it shall not expire before at least two years have elapsed from the day on which the suspension ceased.

If, in the last year of the limitation period, the plaintiff was prevented from instituting the proceedings because the court competent to hear them was closed, the limitation period shall not expire before one year has elapsed from the day on which the court reopened.

For the purposes of calculating the limitation period, it is immaterial whether the right is claimed by the original entitled party or by that party's successor, or whether the right is claimed against the original obligor or against that obligor's successor; provided that if the right passed by way of inheritance, the limitation period shall not expire before at least one year has elapsed from the day on which the right so passed.

"family member" –

"foster parent" means a father or mother in a foster family as defined in the Foster Care for Children Law, 5776-2016, or in another foster family approved by the Ministry of Welfare and Social Services;

"person responsible for a minor" –

The limitation period of a claim in proceedings brought by a victim, in respect of facts constituting an offence as set out below committed against the victim, against the person who harmed the victim and against whom an indictment has been filed for such an offence, shall not expire before one year has elapsed from the day on which the judgment in the criminal proceedings became final:

The parties may agree, in a separate written contract, on a limitation period longer than that prescribed in this Law, and in a claim whose subject matter is not real property – also on a limitation period shorter than that prescribed in this Law, provided that it shall not be shorter than six months.

Where a creditor holds a surety, mortgage, pledge or similar charge (security interest) over a debt, limitation shall not affect the creditor's right to recover from the charge (security interest).

Where twenty-five years have passed over a judgment in proceedings without the person entitled thereunder having taken any action to execute it, the debtor may plead limitation; however, a judgment in proceedings which by its terms does not require execution is not subject to limitation.

In sections 20 and 78 of the Ottoman Land Law, the period prescribed therein shall be replaced by a period of fifteen years, and in respect of real property registered in the land registers after settlement of title under the Land (Settlement of Title) Ordinance – by a period of twenty-five years; however, in respect of a person who began to possess real property after the 24th day of Adar Aleph 5703 (1 March 1943), five years commencing from the day of commencement of this Law shall not be counted in calculating the period; and in place of the legal grounds for suspending the said limitation period referred to in section 20 of that Law, the provisions of this Law for the calculation of the limitation period shall apply.

In the Land (Settlement of Title) Ordinance –

In the Civil Wrongs Ordinance [New Version] –

In the Bills of Exchange Ordinance, in section 96, in subsection (a), the words "five years" shall be replaced by the words "seven years" and the words "one year" shall be replaced by the word "two years".

The following are repealed –

This Law shall not derogate from a limitation period prescribed in respect of a particular matter in another law, unless expressly so stated in this Law; and this Law shall not derogate from any power, under any law, to dismiss proceedings or to refuse relief on grounds of delay.

The provisions of this Law shall apply also to the State.

The Minister of Justice is charged with the implementation of this Law and may make Regulations on any matter relating to its implementation, including Regulations for the purpose of giving effect to provisions concerning the calculation and extension of limitation periods established in an agreement between Israel and a foreign state, or in an international convention to which Israel is a party, even if the provisions of that agreement or convention deviate from the provisions of this Law.