A family friend says that Doron Ofer will appeal the ruling by the Tel Aviv Family Affairs Court in favor of his sister, Leora, and declared valid the final will written by Yuli Ofer on November 2, 2008 in which all the shares in Ofer Investments Ltd. were bequeathed to her and not Doron. Yuli Ofer bequeathed 36% of Ofer Investments' shares.
Ofer Investments' holdings include Mizrahi Tefahot Bank (TASE:MZTF) and the controlling interest in real estate company Melisron Ltd. (TASE: MLSR).
"It is no simple matter to attack a will," said a source involved in the case. "The number of cases in which a will in Israel was overturned is negligible, but Doron believes that justice is on his side."
The appeal will probably be heard by an expanded panel of three judges, who will also review the material, which was only discussed behind closed doors. They will also review Doron Ofer's claim of undue influence on his father, who wrote another will six months earlier in which he divided his shares in Ofer Investments equally between his two children. There were other wills as well. Tel Aviv Family Affairs Court President Judge Tova Sivan said that Yuli Ofer wrote no less than ten wills over the years, and the fact that he changed his mind was "not suspicious". If an appeal against her ruling is filed, it will again discuss the specific circumstances about the writing of the last will.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 5, 2014
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