Beth Din - Present Situation

Present Situation

In Orthodox Judaism, a beth din consists of three observant Jewish men, at least one of whom is widely knowledgeable in Jewish law (halakha), to be capable of instructing the other members in any matters of halakha relevant to the case being heard. In progressive communities, women may serve on the beth din as well.

In practice, a permanent beth din will consist of three rabbis, while a beth din for an occasional matter (such as handling religious vows) need not consist of rabbis. A beth din which handles cases involving complex monetary issues or large community organizations requires "judges" (dayanim, singular: dayan), who require an additional semicha (yadin yadin) which enables them to participate in such a beth din and adjudicate complex cases involving highly technical points of law.

A beth din is required or preferred for the following matters:

• Validation of religious bills of divorce (get, pl. gittin).
• Kosher certification of restaurants and food manufacturers (Hechsher).
• Examination of shochetim and the control of the shechita inspectors
• Conversions to Judaism with at least one member of the court being a rabbi who is an expert on the laws of conversion.
• Supervising the building and maintenance of a mikvah.
• Determination of "personal status" (i.e. whether someone is a Jew according to halakha).
• The authorization and supervision of mohelim.
• Questions relating to burial practices and mourning.

A beth din is sometimes used within the Orthodox Jewish community to resolve civil disputes, with the Shulkhan Arukh calling for civil cases being resolved by religious instead of secular courts (arka'oth). Modern Western societies increasingly permit civil disputes to be resolved by private arbitration, enabling religious Jews to enter into agreements providing for arbitration by a particular beth din in the event of a dispute. By this device, the rules, procedures, and judgment of the beth din are accepted and can be enforced by secular courts in the same manner as those of a secular arbitration association. However, the decisions of religious courts cannot be binding without the prior agreement of both parties, and will otherwise act only as mediation.