Mass Tort brief
Israel Mass Tort Brief: Apple Battery Payouts, Teva's Inhaler Deal, and Golda's ₪350M Suit
Israeli courts approve historic consumer class actions as Teva settles US antitrust litigation over QVAR inhaler patents.
Mass Tort
Teva is paying $35 million and delisting inhaler patents — ending antitrust litigation over generic delays on its QVAR asthma franchise.
BackgroundDrugmakers file patent listings in the US FDA Orange Book to protect brand-name therapeutics from generic alternatives. Class action plaintiffs alleged Teva abused patent filings to maintain monopoly pricing on respiratory inhalers.
- The $35 million settlement resolves long-running antitrust litigation brought on behalf of healthcare purchasers who paid inflated prices for QVAR inhalers.
- As part of the court agreement, Teva will delist the contested patents to allow generic inhalers onto the US market without further legal challenges.
- The resolution removes significant legal liability for Teva while opening its core QVAR asthma franchise to immediate generic competition in the US.
Mass Tort
Apple is paying ₪10 million to resolve its Israeli battery throttling litigation — offering affected iPhone owners up to ₪1,890 per device.
BackgroundThe consumer lawsuit was filed in 2017 following revelations that Apple issued iOS updates that slowed down older iPhone models to prevent sudden battery shutdowns. Similar class actions were settled by Apple in the United States and Europe.
- The settlement covers Israeli owners of iPhone 6, 6s, 7, and SE models affected by iOS 10.2.1 performance throttling, clearing nine years of local litigation.
- An online claims portal opened this week and will accept consumer reimbursement filings through December 16, 2026, distributing funds based on verified ownership.
- The ₪10 million payout resolves all pending Israeli claims against Apple without requiring the company to formally admit legal liability.
Mass Tort
Golda is facing a ₪350 million class action over sugar-free labeling — sparking legislative calls in the Knesset to cap consumer suit damages.
BackgroundIsraeli consumer protection regulations specify strict thresholds for labeling food items as sugar-free. Commercial food chains face severe class action liability when public marketing claims conflict with official regulatory standard definitions.
- Plaintiffs contend Golda's sugar-free frozen desserts exceeded statutory sugar limits due to lactose in dairy ingredients, misleading health-conscious consumers.
- The ₪350 million damages demand sparked widespread debate among business leaders over predatory class action sizing in Israeli courts.
- Knesset members cited the lawsuit in ongoing committee discussions regarding proposed legislative reforms to cap damages under Israel's Class Action Law.
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