Avissar Family Ribbis Initiative Many common financial transactions involve Ribbit, so pitfalls abound for the unaware. Following are some common business activities that can, depending on the circumstances, constitute ribbit. • COSIGNING: Cosigning on a loan or car lease, even where the lender isn’t Jewish or is a publicly-traded financial institution. • CREDIT … [Read more...]

Who is subject to Ribbit? All participants in the transaction violate issurim: lender, borrower, witness, guarantor, and scribe or attorney. Banks and publicly traded companies As ribbit is only prohibited where both parties are Jewish, one may borrow at interest from a publicly-traded bank or financial institution, where the religion of principals of the company is not … [Read more...]

By Dayan Yosef Greenwald Q: May one use Ma'aser money to support communal services or institutions that require the support of everyone in the community, such as a Mikveh, a Shul, or an Eruv? According to the rules of Hoshen Mishpat, such support should in fact be obligatory upon all members of the community. Consequently, if the building of the shul needs improvement, such … [Read more...]

Is there a concept of appealing a Bet Din’s decision in Halacha? By Dayan Yitzhak Grossman[1] Introduction In Part 1 of this series, examined a Talmudic precedent for the possibility of appealing a decision of a Bet Din. We noted a few sources which appeared to indicate that appealing a decision would not be recommended or permitted, while others may have supported the idea, … [Read more...]

Is there a concept of appealing a Bet Din’s decision in Halacha? By Dayan Yitzhak Grossman Introduction In most modern judicial systems, a litigant who is unhappy with a ruling issued against him by a local or district court may request to have the case reexamined by a higher-level court. The higher court can then uphold, or override, the earlier decision of the lower … [Read more...]