Alan Sokobin
before the Beit Din of the Rabbinical Assembly and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America or its representative. They are committed to abide by its rulings and instructions, so that they both may live according to the laws and teachings of our sacred Torah .” Ketubah, in Rabbinical Assembly , 1990. The text that follows has no statement of authorship.“Prenuptial Agree ment , Husband's Assumption of Obligation. I, the undersigned husband to be, hereby obligate myself to support my wife to be in the manner of Jewish husbands who feed and support their wives loyally, If, God forbid, we not continue domestic residence together for whatever reason, then I obligate myself, as of now, to pay to her$....per day(indexed to the consumer price index as of December 31st following the date of our marriage) for food and support(parnasa) for the duration of our Jewish marriage, which is payable each week during the time due, under any circumstances, even if she has another source of income or earnings. Furthermore, I waive mv halakhic rights to my wife’s earnings for the period that she is entitled to the above stipulated sum. However, this obligation shall terminate if my wife refuses to appear upon due notice before a Bet Din for purpose of a hearing concerning any outstanding disputes between us, or in the event that she fails to abide by the decision or recommendation of such Bet Din. I execute this document as an inducement to the marriage between myself and my wife to be. The obligations and conditions contained herein are executed according to all legal and halachic(sic) requirements. I acknowledge that I have effected the above obligation by means of a kinyan(formal Jewish transaction) in an esteemed(chashuv) Bet Din
I have been given the opportunity, prior to executing this document, of consulting with a rabbinic advisor and a legal advisor. The text that follows has no statement of authorship. Only the pertinent sec tions are quoted. Should a dispute arise between the parties after they are married, Heaven forbid, so that they do not live together as husband and wife, they agree to refer their marital dispute to an arbitration panel, namely, the Bet Din of....for a binding decision. Each of the parties agrees to appear in person before the Bet Din at the demand of the other party. The decision of the panel, or a majority of them, shall be fully enforceable in any court of competent jurisdiction.( c) The parties agree that the Bet Din shall apply the equitable distribution law of the State/Province of...., as interpreted as of the date of this agreement, to any property disputes which may arise between them, the division of their property and to questions of support. This agreement constitutes a fully enforceable arbitration agreement. The parties acknowledge that each of them have been given the opportunity prior to signing this agreement to consult with their own rabbinic advisor and legal advisor. “In any decision made pursuant to this subdivision the courts shall, where
appropriate, consider the effect of a barrier to remarriage, as defined in sub
section six of section two hundred and fifty three of this article, on the factors enumerated in paragraph(d) of this sub-division.” N.Y. Dom. ReL. Law§ 236B:5(McKinney 1992).§253(6) limits“barriers to remarriage” to situations where a get is withheld. See MicHAEL BROYDE , THE PURSUIT OF JUSTICE AND JewisH Law 139(1996)
Rabbinical Courts: Modern Day Solomons, 6 Corum. J.L.& Soc. Pross. 49, 50 (1970)