WIN: Federal Court Dismisses Third Anti-Israel Lawsuit Pending for Nearly a Decade, Fight Not Over as We Oppose Attempts To Revive Case
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In a case pending since February of 2017, the ACLJ just helped secure a victory against an anti-Israel lawsuit brought by foreigners in federal court in Washington, D.C.
We represented defendants in a set of three similar cases, and now, with the dismissal of the most recent case, we’ve helped secure victory in all three.
A court in Washington recently granted our motion to dismiss and then dismissed the lawsuit. Case closed, right? Not so fast. Doing anything they can to keep the case alive, the anti-Israel plaintiffs have asked the court to reconsider the dismissal or transfer the case to New York.
Our defense team just filed our response briefexplaining to the court the many reasons that their motion should be denied.
A little context might be in order. A plaintiff in one of the cases actually has terrorist ties. And the claims in these cases are absurd: American individuals, companies, and organizations doing business in or with Israel or donating charitably to help Israelis are essentially committing or assisting in the committing of international war crimes and related law – claims so absurd that one could blow it off and miss what may be the real point.
This is nothing but Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) via lawsuit.
The goal is simple: delegitimize Israel however possible.
These are massive complaints filed in these cases. One was 175 pages long. They filed them in federal court in our nation’s capital.
Defendants don’t have the luxury of just ignoring or blowing them off. They’ve got to hire lawyers (though thanks to our supporters, we represent our clients pro bono). Corporations have to explain the suit to their board or to their insurers. These cases pend for years (approaching a full decade on the latest one to be dismissed). They impose risks and concerns.
Being sued is no small thing. The point? Maybe doing business in or with Israel, or giving charitably to Israelis, is not worth the extra risk and expense. Maybe an insurance company will raise a premium or reconsider coverage. Maybe it will help direct anti-Israel rage toward these named defendants. It’s a smear campaign, but it’s also an attempt to scare people away from legitimizing Israel in the international marketplace.
Ultimately, the court dismissed this case on the grounds that the court lacks personal jurisdiction over the remaining defendants. In other words, it held that it lacked the authority to even hear or decide the claims made against them. According to the court, among the other grounds for dismissal, “the Amended Complaint offers only bare allegations that do not come close to establishing an ‘agreement’ among the defendants to perform an unlawful act, let alone an overt act in furtherance of that agreement.”
But again, this was a case first brought nearly 10 years ago. And we’re not done yet because the anti-Israel plaintiffs are asking for another bite at the apple, either here in Washington or in New York. And the defendants have to file a brief opposing it.
The defendants just filed that brief, and we’re being direct and to the point, urging the court to reject this last-ditch attempt to keep the “case” alive. We will keep you posted on what happens next in this case.
We’ve been engaged in the fight to defend Israel and against BDS, in its many forms, for years.