Kriel & Co., a boutique firm for commercial and international law
Nearly30years of experience
Kriel & Co. is a boutique firm for commercial and international law, founded in 2009 by Adv. Assaf Kriel. The firm serves as the outside legal department of companies, startups and businesses in Israel and abroad, supporting them from the first agreement to the most complex transactions.
Alongside its commercial and transactional practice, the firm has a litigation department headed by Adv. Ido Sperling, representing clients before all courts and in arbitration. Our clients get complete counsel under one roof, from the agreement to the courtroom, with the personal attention of a boutique and partners who know their business in depth.
The firm has two offices, in Tel Aviv and Modiin, and works in Hebrew and English with clients and business partners around the world.
A professional working environment, in Tel Aviv and Modiin
The people behind the firm
Our partners combine commercial and international experience with litigation before every court.
Founding & Managing Partner
Adv. Assaf Kriel
Founder of the firm, with nearly 30 years of experience in commercial and international law. Advises companies, entrepreneurs and business owners on transactions, agreements, investment rounds and M&A.
Partner, Head of Litigation
Adv. Ido Sperling
A member of the Israel Bar Association since 2004, with an LL.B. from Reichman University (formerly IDC Herzliya) in the joint program specializing in Government, Diplomacy and Strategy. He practiced at several of Israel's premier litigation firms, representing clients before all judicial instances.
He has handled large-scale cases across civil and commercial law, with specialized expertise in complex tort and insurance litigation, including D&O liability insurance and professional malpractice claims against attorneys and accountants.
Adv. Assaf Kriel
A commercial lawyer and a long-term partner to the business
I believe a good lawyer for a business is one who knows it from the inside: the product, the partners, the customers and the risks. That is why, since founding the firm in 2009, I chose a boutique model in which I am personally involved with every client and every matter, together with a small professional team. No layers, no waiting and no need to re-explain the background every time.
Professional path
- 2004 to 2007: Legal counsel and business development manager at Keren Eshel (Investments) Ltd. Drafting and reviewing investment agreements, leading negotiations with portfolio-company management, due diligence and review of technology companies' business plans.
- 2007 to 2012: Senior attorney at the office of Dr. Shlomo Ness, Israel's leading firm in corporate rehabilitation, liquidation and debt arrangements. Entrepreneurship agreements, formation of local companies and foreign SPVs, shareholder and founders' agreements, financing and guarantee agreements, and complex contract, corporate and IP matters.
- Since 2009: Founder of Kriel & Co., a boutique commercial and international law firm and a one-stop shop for companies, tech entrepreneurs and businesses with local and cross-border activity.
How I support clients
Company formation and ongoing counsel, founders' and shareholders' agreements, term sheets and investment agreements, M&A transactions, distribution and agency agreements, know-how transfer and licensing, software development and sale agreements, contracting agreements, employment law, tenders, compliance and regulation, company secretarial services and legal opinions.
How I work
- Direct contact: you speak with the lawyer who actually handles your matter.
- Availability: fast answers when you need them, including at the critical moments.
- Long-term familiarity: the better I know the business, the more precise, fast and efficient the advice.
- Commercial perspective: the goal is to move the business forward, not just to draft a document.
You can start with a specific matter, such as an agreement, a transaction or a dispute, and continue from there to ongoing counsel as the company's outside lawyer.
Education and recognition
- LL.B in Law and MBA in Business Administration.
- Member of the International Bar Association (IBA) and additional international legal networks.
- Winner of the 2025 Advisory Excellence international award in commercial law.
Community involvement
Alongside legal work, I see community service as an integral part of the firm: mentoring entrepreneurs and young people, pro bono legal aid and personal involvement in social organizations.
Memberships and awards
Adv. Assaf Kriel explains
Short videos on the issues business owners raise most often.
Supporting startups: from idea to exit Founders' agreement: your most expensive mistake International transactions The 11th SMB Convention: 10 reasons to sign a written contract Import and export since the war Business in wartime: the clause people skip
Publications and press
Articles, interviews and features by the firm and Adv. Assaf Kriel in leading media outlets.
Haaretz · 2025
Attorney Assaf Kriel: Artificial Intelligence Is Changing Commercial Law
Sponsored interview in which Adv. Assaf Kriel describes how his boutique firm uses AI tools at every stage of legal work while keeping full human oversight and no junior staff. It notes the firm's founding in 2010, its selection by Excellence Advisory as leading commercial law firm for 2025, its practice areas and its international memberships (IBA, Law Link Global, ILF, Partners & Co.).
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TheMarker · 2025
Adv. Assaf Kriel: AI Is Changing Commercial Law
Marketing-content interview in which Adv. Assaf Kriel explains how AI systems are used across his firm's legal work to deliver faster, more accurate and cheaper service, stressing that AI does not replace human judgment. It cites the firm's selection by Excellence Advisory as the leading commercial firm for 2025, its practice areas and its international network memberships.
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TheMarker Magazine · 2021
The Comprehensive Legal Protection of Kriel & Co.
Marketing feature in TheMarker Magazine presenting Kriel & Co. as a firm offering comprehensive legal protection to businesses so clients avoid lengthy litigation. It covers Adv. Kriel's background (law degree, master's from City University London, in-house counsel roles), the firm's founding in 2009, practice areas, international network memberships and named clients such as Electra and Brack Capital.
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Ynet · 2019
Organized a nature party and was acquitted of running an unlicensed business
The Kfar Saba Magistrate's Court acquitted a man who organized a nature party in the Kula forest of operating a business without a license. The judge ruled it was not proven the event was for profit and that a one-off party does not meet the definition of a "business" under the Business Licensing Law.
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Ynet · 2019
Sold counterfeit L'Oréal products and must pay damages
The Tel Aviv District Court upheld L'Oréal's suit against a private individual who traded in about 500 counterfeit Kérastase hair masks, finding passing off under the Commercial Torts Law. The defendant was ordered to pay NIS 50,000 in damages plus NIS 25,000 in costs and legal fees.
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Ynet · 2019
How to raise investors and set up a company: from idea to exit
Q&A article in which Adv. Assaf Kriel answers readers' questions on founding a startup, protecting ideas with NDAs, raising investors and incorporating a company. It opens with McDonald's acquisition of Dynamic Yield and walks through the path from idea to exit.
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Ynet · 2019
10 clauses every shareholders’ agreement must include
Guide listing ten essential clauses for a shareholders' agreement to reduce disputes between partners, including vesting and deadlock-resolution mechanisms. Each clause is explained with practical drafting examples.
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Mako
Not how to do business: suing a partner who left for a competitor
The Petah Tikva Magistrate's Court rejected most claims by a ventilation-company owner who sought NIS 900,000 from a former partner who joined a competitor. The judge awarded only token compensation of NIS 10,000 plus costs for breach of fiduciary duty.
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Psakdin
Franchising: the District Court blocks a franchisee’s removal
The "Johnny Crispy" sandwich chain sought to remove a franchisee from its Be'er Sheva branch before the main lawsuit was decided, and the Magistrate's Court granted the request. On appeal, District Court Judge Yaakov Persky reversed it, ruling the relationship had not yet irretrievably broken down, so the franchisee may keep running the branch.
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Psakdin
Copyright: architect ordered to compensate a photographer
An architect posted on Facebook, without permission or credit, photos of a garden he designed that were taken by a professional photographer, who sued for NIS 200,000 for copyright infringement. The Tel Aviv Magistrate's Court held the photos were the photographer's original work and ordered the architect to pay NIS 10,000 in damages and NIS 6,000 in legal fees.
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