Filing a Claim in a Family Dispute

This service allows the filing of a claim between family members on matters such as child support, custody, or division of property, when the attempt to resolve the dispute ended without agreement.

This service is intended for filing a claim between family members, for example: between spouses, or between parents and their children, on matters of a family dispute arising from the relationship between the parties to the case, according to the Law for the Settlement of Litigation in Family Disputes.
It is possible to file a claim on matters such as: child support, arrangements for time with the children, or division of property accumulated during the period of shared life.

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A claim may be filed only after an application for dispute resolution has been filed with the Family Court, the meetings at the Assistance Unit have taken place, no agreement was reached between the parties, and they are not interested in continuing additional mediation proceedings.

  • If you opened a dispute resolution file (DR) during the past year, and 60 days have passed since the date the file was opened, you may file a claim with the Family Court within 15 days after the end of the waiting period.
  • If 60 days have not yet passed since the opening of the dispute resolution file, it is possible to request that the court shorten the waiting period.
  • In certain cases, it is also possible to request an extension of the waiting period, according to the ruling of the court.

For a request to shorten or extend the waiting period

If the party who opened the dispute resolution file does not file a claim within 15 days, or files a claim only regarding some of the matters, the other party may file a claim regarding the matters that were not included in the claim.

It is possible to file a claim in a family dispute without first filing an application for dispute resolution, only in the following cases:

  1. During the year before the filing of the claim, an application for dispute resolution was already filed between the same parties and those seeking to file the claim attended the MAHUT meetings (information, acquaintance, and coordination), provided that at the time of filing the claim a period of 60 days has passed since the opening of the dispute resolution file (the waiting period) and 15 days have passed from the end of the waiting period.
  2. An application for dispute resolution was filed between the parties more than a year ago, and at the time of filing the claim another claim regarding a family dispute between the parties already exists, or the proceedings in the previous claim ended during the year before the filing of the current claim.
     
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Spouses, parents, or parents and children who are involved in a family dispute.

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Claims may be filed in this manner regarding:

  • Residence (place of residence) or child support of a spouse or children
  • Residence (place of residence) or child support for adult sons or daughters who have not yet reached the age of 21
  • A dispute between a parent and adult sons or daughters who have not yet reached the age of 21
  • Division of property, except for a claim concerning inheritance
  • Visitation arrangements
  • Temporary remedies
  • Claims concerning marriage and divorce, except were filed by agreement
  • A matter relating to children according to the Legal Capacity and Guardianship Law, except for a claim according to the Hague Convention regarding the return of abducted children, including an order prohibiting departure from the country submitted in connection with such claim
  • Paternity and maternity, except for a claim filed by agreement
     
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Required Documents for filing a claim in the Family Court

  • In claims regarding visitation arrangements and property claims, or both, the claim must be submitted drafted according to the statement of claim template used in the Family Court, as in the following examples:
  • For a claim between family members, except for a claim for child support, the following must be attached:
  • For a claim for child support, the following must be attached:
  • In any family dispute claim filed with the court after the stay-of-proceedings period, an accompanying notice according to Form 4 of the Regulations for the Settlement of Litigation in Family Disputes must be attached. This notice provides the court with information, for example whether the plaintiffs attended the MAHUT meeting (information, acquaintance, and coordination), as required.
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Click on the heading to open the information relevant to you:

  • Only Attorneys may file the application on the Net HaMishpat website.
  • Before logging in, it is recommended to prepare all documents scanned as files in PDF format only. All files together must not exceed 30 MB.
  • The website must be accessed from a computer; it is not adapted for browsing from a phone.
  • You must log in using the national identification button or a smart card.
  • After logging in, make sure that you are identified as a lawyer – at the top left, your lawyer’s license number should appear, and not your personal identity card number. If your identity card number appears, this can be changed by clicking the small arrow next to the number.
  • If the arrow does not appear, and it is not possible to select your lawyer’s license number, you are probably not registered as a lawyer in the Net HaMishpat database.
  • To register in the database, you must complete an online registration form by entering the Net HaMishpat website and clicking the bottom link in the center of the page – Adding a New Lawyer on the Net HaMishpat Website.

To file the application:

  • You must click the Open Case button.
  • You must select the fields for court, case type, and others.
  • You must mark V in the power of attorney.
  • If you wish to pay by authorization to debit an account and not by credit card, this must be selected already at the stage of marking the V in the power of attorney. Otherwise, it will not be possible to select this later. To choose this option:
    • You must click the Attorney Details button.
    • You must move to the Bank Account tab and verify the account details for the debit:
      • You must enter the bank account details and click the Verify Data button.
      • The bank account details must match the account details existing in Net HaMishpat for the office.
      • If the account details do not match, you must update them on Net HaMishpat. For an explanation of how to do this
If you wish to pay by credit card, or if you have an exemption from payment of the fee, there is no need to click the Attorney Details button.
  • You must click the Next button and continue with the process of defining the parties in the case, and then attaching the files.

To file appendices with the application:

  • Additional documents may be uploaded through a designated Browse button, under the heading Attachment of Accompanying Documents.

The documents must be in PDF format only. All files uploaded to the system, together with the application and its documents, must not exceed 30 MB.
  • After uploading the files, you must click the Next button and continue with the filing process and payment of the fee until a confirmation number (reference) is received for follow-up.
  • If payment by credit card is selected, at the end of the filing process you will be redirected to complete the payment on the government payments website.

It is possible to send the application by registered mail to the Family Court according to local jurisdiction, as detailed in the previous section – Arrival at the Court.

Fee

  • A fee must be paid, as detailed in the fee section on this page.
  • The receipt must be attached to the application.
An application that is sent without a receipt for the exact amount will be rejected.

To file appendices with the application

The application and the appendices must be attached and sent together.

It is not possible to file the application by fax.

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  • After the application is filed, it is transferred for a judicial ruling.
  • It is possible to check the status of the application in the Net HaMishpat system, which must be accessed through the national identification system or by means of a smart card.
  • The website must be accessed only from a computer; it is not adapted for browsing from a phone.

For details on how to check the status of the application, click the relevant heading:

At the end of filing the application, a confirmation number (reference) will be received, with which it is possible to follow the opening of the case and receive the case number in two ways:

In the Attorneys Area

In the 'Track My Filings' tab

  • It is possible to see the recent filings, their approval numbers, and the status of their handling.
  • You must check the status of the application processing.
  • This may be done after the end of the business day following the day on which the application was filed.

On the top bar of the website, under the 'Filings' tab

  • Clicking the tab will open a window in which 'Locate Filings by Reference' must be selected.
  • You must enter the confirmation number (reference) in the designated field and click the 'Locate' button at the bottom left of the page. The status of processing the filing will be displayed.
  • You must check the status of the application; this may be done after the end of the business day following the day on which the application was filed.
  • After the case is opened, the case number will appear.
  • By means of the case number, it is possible to review the case – by clicking the number.
  • After entering the case, the folders in it will appear on the right.

 

  • Upon filing the application, the documents will be transferred for examination by the court secretariat.
  • The court may send requests to complete documents; if they are not sent within the period specified in the requests, the case will be closed.
  • It is therefore highly recommended to make sure to check the status of the application
  • At the end of the filing, a case number will be received. You must wait for a judicial ruling in the case.
    It is possible to follow the application in three ways:

On 'Net HaMishpat'

  • You must enter 'Net HaMishpat' by means of the national identification system or a smart card. On the top bar of the website, you must type the case number, click the 'Locate' button, and then it will be possible to review it.
  • If the case number has been forgotten or is unknown:
    • It is possible to click the 'Case Search' tab and select 'My Cases'.
    • You must enter a date range, and a list of cases will be received, from which the correct case must be selected.
  • After entering the case, folders will appear on the right. You must enter 'Paper Case', where all the documents in the case, including rulings, will appear.
At the court secretariat where the case was opened
It is possible to go to the court secretariat with an identity card and request information regarding the case.
At the National Information and Service Center
It is possible to call the National Information and Service Center to receive information regarding the processing of the case.

You must track the arrival of the mail at the court and wait until the end of the business day following the date of its arrival, so that the case will be opened. After that, it is possible to follow the handling of the application in two ways:

On 'Net HaMishpat' for filers who are not represented by a lawyer

  • If an email address was updated in the application, update notices from the court will be received there.
  • To read the notices, you must click the link in them, which will lead to Net HaMishpat:
    • You must enter it through the national identification system.
    • Next to the identity card number an envelope icon will appear; by clicking it, notices from the court will open.
    • In this way the court will notify you when the case is opened, and a case number will be sent.
  • Another way to check whether the case has been opened on the Net HaMishpat website after logging in through national identification:
    • By clicking the 'Case Search' tab and selecting 'My Cases'. A date range for the search must be selected.
    • A list will be received from which it will be possible to select the relevant case. 
    • You must click the case number to review it and check whether a ruling has been handed down in it.

Attorneys

May check in 'Net HaMishpat' the status of processing the case, through the 'Case Search' tab and select 'My Cases':

  • You must select the court and an opening date range.
  • If the case was opened, a case number will appear, and it will be possible to click the number in order to enter the case.
  • It is important to note that on the top left of the website, the lawyer’s license number is shown and not the identity card number, in order to view the cases in which the lawyer represents a party.

At the court secretariat where the case was opened

It is possible to go to the court secretariat with an identity card and request information regarding the case.

At the National Information and Service Center

 

  • The National Information and Service Center cannot provide the inquirer with a case number.
    To find the case number, you must go to the court secretariat where the case was opened, with an identity card.
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Please note, if there is any difference or conflict between the information on this page and the law, the provisions of the law will apply.
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