In a recent report, a Beth Din (rabbinical court) rabbi told Arutz 7 that most people who seek their rulings come from the national religious and ultra-orthodox community. However, one of the Beth Din’s judges, Rabbi Ido Rechnitz revealed that a growing number of secular Jews, and even Arabs are also seeking justice at the courts that are based on Torah law.
One reason he offered was because the Rabbinical Courts were less expensive than secular courts and yet are still legally binding. Additionally, trials in Beth Din’s are much faster and more expedient than their secular counterparts. Any Israeli can choose to be judged in accordance with Torah law if they mention a rabbinical court as their arbitrator on any and all contractual agreements that they sign.
The rabbi also added that if a judgement is between two Muslims, the judge should rule in accordance with Islamic law saying that: “the default is to judge a non-Jew according to the law of his religion or society but in a case in which a Jew and a non-Jew together request to be judged according to Jewish law, we judge them in a Torah court.” However, the rabbi added that if a Jew and non-Jew stand before the Beth Din, the court is to judge in accordance with Jewish law.
Rabbi Rechnitz sourced his statement from the Torah sage Maimonides regarding the laws of kings, which states: “Two non-Jews who come to be judged in Jewish courts – and both of them want this – they are judged in a Torah court.”
In November, Breaking Israel News published a story of Israeli rabbis who say they have lost faith in Israel’s secular judges.