The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that Israeli claims filed against Facebook will be heard in Israeli courts, even though the user-license-agreement to join the site says suits can only be filed in a California court.
The court accepted the position of the Attorney General, according to which giving multinational corporations the ability to determine jurisdiction in cases involving customers represented a major imbalance of power, even if the user-agreement states that it must be so
The provisions would have forced any Israeli suing Facebook to have his or her case heard in California.
The decision was made in the framework of a petition to approve a class action lawsuit against the companies Facebook Ireland and Facebook US, on a number of grounds for infringement of the privacy of users on Facebook and non-registration with the Registrar of Databases.
Facebook filed an application to dismiss the claim out of hand, claiming that the user-license-agreement signed by users on the site when opening an account leaves jurisdiction over complaints with the California courts.
The Central District Court rejected the request to dismiss the lawsuit and determined that the stipulations of the user-license-agreement should be annulled.
Under the ruling, Israelis can now sue Facebook in Israeli courts. Facebook US users will be able to sue under Israeli law. However, the Israeli courts will have to apply California law when hearing cases involving Facebook Ireland. (A7)
The Jewish Voice has covered extensively many issues regarding the social media giant over the past several months
An Immediate Call for Congress to Step Up to the Plate and Monitor Facebook
Facebook’s Digital Reign of Terror
The Traps of Social Media: Is it Even Possible to “Unfriend” Facebook
The Media’s Facebook Hysteria and Double Standards
Is Facebook Intentionally Blocking Viewer Engagement on the Jewish Voice Page?