Upon demise of the father, one of his sons requested that he and his wife be recognized as the owners of the father's farm, by virtue of his appointment as "continuing son" by the father, an appointment that was approved by the agency and the agricultural association, even though the father's will divided the estate among all siblings.
The Court decided that the son is the owner of the rights in the estate as a continuing son. A "continuing son" in an estate is a descendant of a farm owner, including his spouse, who holds the farm by virtue of his parents' commitment, in order to continue the agricultural activity and prevent the division of estates. This status, defined in the Israeli cooperative association regulations, requires approval by the settling institutions and applies mainly to workers' settlements. The appointment of a continuing son is protected by the Israeli law of gift, so the right that the "continuing son" receives is an irrevocable obligation of his parents, because subject to the approval of the gift by the settling institutions, the "continuing son" will receive, after the death of both parents, the right to use the estate and their farm and will become a licensee in their place. The rights of the member of the association are rights of permission that are not part of his estate. Here, the appointment of the son as a continuing son and the declaration given by the father was never revoked by the father and was also approved by the settling institutions and thus are not part of the father's estate. Therefore, the son is the owner of the rights in the estate and is entitled to be registered as the owner of the rights.