I particularly loved Rabbi Yair Hoffman’s “Putting Red in the Blue Label” (February 9, 2023) article in the “Thoughts on Torah” column of the Parshat Yitro issue of The Jewish Link. However, I was struck by the dissonance of the addition of an article advocating for another form of gneivas daas in the very same issue, fewer than 75 pages later.

In the Legal Matters section, this week’s advice was on the topic of Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPTs). MAPTs are a form of legal fiction to portray one’s assets as more meager than they actually are in order to receive benefits from the government, such as Medicaid, that were created to assist Americans of limited means. The article continues to advise that MAPTs are also a good way to “shield” your money from capital gains taxes. The goal of MAPTs is to allow one to receive benefits they ordinarily wouldn’t qualify for and avoid obligations that they would ordinarily be expected to carry out. This is a textbook example of gneivas daas!

As Rabbi Hoffman writes, “Gneivas Daas is an important and essential value in Torah Judaism.” Whether this is manifested through avoiding pouring Red Label into a Blue Label bottle or not using MAPTs to attain unintended benefits or avoid our financial obligations, we should strive to live out this fundamental mitzvah.