The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court recently issued a ruling in a defamation lawsuit filed by the founders of Doro Italian Products, known as Pasta Rico, against the company’s chairman, former minister Shalom Simhon. According to a report by Omer Tamri Leon in TheMarker, Judge Nurit Tabiv Mizrahi determined that Simhon must pay 20,000 NIS in damages to the founders, Gil Ben Dov and Shay Alon, in addition to 10,000 NIS in legal costs.
The lawsuit stemmed from an internal email circulated by Simhon regarding the resignation of the company’s CFO, shortly after he assumed the role. In the email, Simhon claimed that the founders were acting in a manner that drove away highly experienced individuals and alleged that the two intimidated the company's accountant. The founders viewed these statements as a smear on their professional reputations and subsequently filed the defamation suit.
In her ruling, the judge accepted the plaintiffs' position, concluding that Simhon’s remarks constituted defamation. This legal proceeding highlights the sensitivity inherent in top-level management ranks, especially within subsidiaries of large corporations such as Tnuva. The ruling underscores the importance of careful phrasing in internal organizational communication, even when the dialogue is not intended for the general public. The fact that the correspondence was internal did not shield Simhon, as the law does not necessarily distinguish between public and limited distribution when statements may cause damage to an individual's reputation. The court's decision emphasizes that senior officials must exercise extreme caution when criticizing colleagues or partners, as using language that harms professional standing without sufficient factual basis can lead to significant financial liability. This case serves as a reminder for directors and managers to carefully consider the content of their documents and emails, as these can serve as concrete evidence in civil litigation, even within internal corporate contexts.