Israeli lawyer faces ethics complaint over expert opinion used to target IDF reservist in UK

An Israeli lawyer, Michal Pomeranz, is facing an ethics complaint filed with the Israel Bar Association's Tel Aviv District Ethics Committee. The complaint, lodged by a British-Israeli IDF reservist (referred to as Soldier A), alleges that Pomeranz provided a misleading expert opinion to a UK organization, the International Center of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), which attempted to prosecute Soldier A for serving in the IDF after October 7, 2023.

a reservist may not ignore a call-up order, and certainly not an emergency call-up order.

Soldier A argues that Pomeranz's report misrepresented Israeli reserve service rules, specifically claiming that reservists abroad are not explicitly required to return to Israel for duty. This point was crucial to the ICJP's argument that Soldier A "enlisted" voluntarily. A UK court ultimately dismissed the ICJP's case as "fundamentally misconceived in law" and ordered them to pay Soldier A's costs. The complaint contends that Pomeranz's actions constitute a disciplinary offense and harm national security and public trust in the legal profession.