A complex, large-scale legal dispute lies at the heart of the prestigious 'Bereshit' residential project in the Bavli neighborhood of Tel Aviv. According to reports from Globes, the primary parties involved—the construction firm Electra Construction and 'Migdalei Bereshit Daniel,' owned by the Kozhinov family—are currently engaged in arbitration proceedings involving an extraordinary sum exceeding one billion shekels.
The core of the dispute concerns the contractual relationship between the contractor and the developers, which has deteriorated following a series of events and prolonged delays in delivering the apartments. Electra Construction has filed a claim for approximately 270 million shekels, alleging delays by the developers in transferring regular payments due for construction work, as well as significant financial repercussions resulting from a fire at the site that impacted project progress and schedules.
Conversely, the project developer, 'Migdalei Bereshit Daniel' of the Kozhinov family, has filed a substantial counterclaim reaching up to one billion shekels. The project, considered one of Israel's most prestigious, has marketed apartments at record prices reaching 117,000 shekels per square meter. However, this paper-thin prestige met a complex reality on the ground. The project suffered from a long-running string of delays, with the original occupancy date for the tower being postponed by two years. These lengthy delays have increased tensions not only between the project parties but also with buyers, who are managing their own legal disputes against the developers.
The current legal proceedings are further evidence of the operational and managerial difficulties the project has experienced in recent years. The choice of arbitration reflects an attempt to resolve professional and financial disputes outside of court while navigating complex contractual issues. For attorneys and professionals in real estate and commercial law, this conflict illustrates the significant risks inherent in mega-projects, where construction delays immediately translate into massive financial damages and a complex web of cross-claims between the contractor and developer, further complicated by the involvement of third parties like the buyers left without their homes on the scheduled dates.