Lenders' liability for environmental damages in the absence of statutory regulation – lessons from the Israeli model: part 2

Abstract

The first part of this article appeared in the previous issue of the Law and Financial Markets Review. The first part described (1) the justifications for imposing liability on lenders for the environmental harms caused by their borrowers; (2) the US experience in regulating lender liability; and (3) the Israeli law on lender liability in the absence of regulation under theories of environmental law, bank regulation, and the fiduciary duty of banking institutions. This part continues with an examination of tort, corporate law and estoppel by representation theories under Israeli law for holding lenders liable. It concludes with an analysis of the utility of using legal theories other than direct regulation to impose environmental liability on lenders.