The Tel Aviv District Court refused to prohibit tenants of a building who smoke on their balconies from doing so. This led to tenants of the building reaching an agreement, that they would not smoke on certain areas of the balcony. The court accepted the agreement but was unwilling to set it as a precedent.

The story began three years ago, when a couple from Holon who suffered from asthma, was unable to open the balcony door because the neighbor would smoke outside, and they were unable to tolerate secondhand smoke.

The couple turned to the magistrate’s court, hoping the court would prohibit the neighbor from smoking on his balcony within 40 m of their home. The court rejected the petition outright, because the petitioner was unable to prove that the smoke can penetrate the walls from one apartment to the other.

The interesting compromise reached between the parties will be validated by verdict of the court, but it will not be a precedent, according to Justice Yehudit Shevach, who says, “we are not the Supreme Court, and we do not act beyond our authority.”

Either way, the compromise will bring back the elderly couple to their home, and the neighbor will be prohibited from smoking in every area immediately adjacent to their apartments, which comprises 1/5 of the balcony.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)