Riverdale-We are pleased to announce the formation of the International Beit Din (hereafter: IBD). In the event that a couple is unable to settle their marital differences by themselves or with the assistance of a mediator, the IBD will address all marriage matters including grounds for issuing a divorce judgment, dividing up marital assets upon divorce, spousal and child support, and parenting arrangements (custody and visitation privileges). Upon mutual agreement to resolve their differences at the IBD, parties will sign a shtar borerut, an arbitration agreement accompanied by the execution of a kinyan (a symbolic act for undertaking an obligation), which halachically and legally empowers the beit din panel to render a decision–a judgment enforceable in civil court.
From time to time, there emerges the issue of igun–known in modern Hebrew as sarvanut get (get recalcitrance)–where either the Jewish husband refuses to grant a get to his Jewish wife or the Jewish wife refuses to accept a get from her Jewish husband. Frequently, in such instances, the recalcitrant spouse makes the granting or the receipt of the get contingent upon the fulfillment of certain conditions such as extorting funds from his or her spouse respectively. Such issues of igun will be dealt with by the IBD. Following in the footsteps of many Ashkenazic and Sephardic rebbeim, we will leave no stone unturned in order to free the spouse from igun.
A beit din (a Jewish court), an institution whose workings and contributions to ”the path of Halacha,” is unknown by most people in our community. One of the primary reasons for communal unfamiliarity with this institution can be traced back to a Mishnaic ruling1 “Upon finishing their deliberations, they would bring the litigants back to the courtroom, and the senior member of the panel would state: Mr. X, you are acquitted and Mr. X, you are liable.”
In short, the rendering of a beit din decision is limited to identifying the party who is innocent and the party who is responsible. Beit din procedure does not mandate the furnishing of a reason(s) for a beit din judgment. A review of various passages in the Talmud, as well the rulings throughout the ages until this very day, will show a consensus that generally speaking, a dayan (an arbiter) may issue a psak din (a decision) bereft of any reasoning.2
However, prior to a beit din’s rendering of its judgment, should a litigant be concerned that a member of the panel or the entire panel be ignorant of halacha and thus, concerned that an error may be committed in rendering the psak di, or suspicious that a member of the panel or the entire panel are biased in certain instances, the panel is obligated to provide a reasoned opinion.3 As such, though halachah does not mandate that under all circumstances a beit din provide reasons for its decisions, given that our community may have concerns about the integrity of the institution of beit din, and the realization of the acute need to articulate our reasoning concerning these matters, we will operate in a transparent environment and endeavor to provide a reasoned psak din, decision in our cases.
Moreover, regarding cases involving matters of igun, following in the time-honored practice of numerous poskim and dayanim, our panel will seek the approval of a renowned Torah scholar or dayan prior to issuing our psak din.
The IBD is an autonomous institution, independent of every organization, and seeks to preserve the confidentiality of all individuals who seek its assistance. The IBD is funded by foundations and respected members of the Jewish community who serve as benefactors to numerous institutions in our community. Whereas, the IBD charges fees for divorcing couples who appear in front of us for end-of-marriage issues, those who appear at the IBD regarding a matter of igun will receive our services gratis.
Rabbi Simcha Krauss, who spearheaded the establishment of this beit din and serves as the av beit din, presiding arbitrator received his yadin yadin rabbinical ordination (expertise in halachic family and commercial law) from Rabbi Yitzhak Hutner z”l, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Chaim Berlin, and served on the St. Louis beit din for many years regarding matters of gittin. Rabbi Warburg (the author) serves as director and a dayan of the beit din and serves as a dayan in the hasidic, Modern Orthodox and yeshiva communities in the NY-NJ area, and is the author of a forthcoming work, Rabbinic Authority: The Vision and the Reality, Volume 2, that deals with his beit din rulings. Also serving on the panel is Rabbi Yosef Blau, who presently serves as a dayan for the New York City beit din le’giyur (rabbinical court for conversion) under the aegis of the RCA, and formerly served on the Yeshiva Rabbeinu Yitzhak Elchanan’s beit din and on the Beth Din of America.
For further inquiries regarding our beit din, please contact us at 201-357-4056 or at [email protected]
By Rabbi Ronnie Warburg
Rabbi Warburg is a lifelong Teaneck resident and a dayan on the new International Beit Din
