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ANTIQUITY

Torah Commentators point out that Jethro was the first to suggest to Moses that he divest his legal powers and delegate his power of judgment to lower courts. This situation was formalised later when God gave the explicit command ( Deuteronomy 16:18) to "establish judges and officers in your gates".

There were three types of courts ( Mishnah , tractate Sanhedrin 1:1-4 and 1:6):
  • The Sanhedrin , the grand central court on the Temple Mount , numbering 71

  • Smaller courts of 23, called a Sanhedrin Ketana, a "small Sanhedrin". These courts could pass the Death Verdict . These existed on two levels, the one higher in standing than the other:

  • --- Capitals of the Tribes had a court of 23

  • --- All towns of a minimum size (either 120 or 230 people) had to have a court of 23, which was under the jurisdiction of the tribal court

  • The smallest court of three; any smaller court could not pass binding verdicts and only dealt with monetary matters.


Participation in these courts required the classical '' Semicha '', the transmission of judicial authority in a straight line down from Moses. Since the destruction of the Temple In Jerusalem in 70 CE, the transmission of ''semicha'' has been suspended. Attempts in the 16th Century to reinstate the ''semicha'' were unsuccessful; Rabbi Yosef Karo was one of the recipients of this ''semicha''.

Courts ruled in both ritual and monetary matters (''issurim'' and ''mamonoth''). Any question that could not be resolved by a smaller court was passed up to a higher court. If the Sanhedrin was still uncertain, Divine opinion was sought through the '' Urim Ve-Tumim '' (the parchment in the High Priest's breastplate, which was inscribed with the Name Of God and could give metaphysical clues).

The Mishnah and Talmud distinguish between criminal (''issurim'') and civil (''mamonoth'') cases, and impose different regulations for each, with criminal cases generally having much more stringent limitations.

Even though normally an Orthodox beit din requires a minimum of three Jews knowledgeable and observant of Jewish Law , in new communities and exigencies, providing a thorough search has proved unfruitful, ''halakhah'' requires that even one Orthodox Jew can establish a beit din, since every Orthodox community is required to establish its own beit din.


PRESENT SITUATION

In orthodox Judaism, a ''beth din'' needs to be made up of three adult Jew ish males, at least one of whom needs to be widely knowledgeable in '' Halakha '' (Jewish law), and must be sufficiently knowledgeable to instruct the other two members in any matters of halakha relevant to the case being heard.

In practice, permanent ''battei din'' consist of three rabbis, while ''battei din'' for an occasional matter (e.g. handling religious vows) need not consist of rabbis. For courts that handle complex monetary cases or large community organisations, ''dayanim'' ("judges", singular: ''dayan'') are required. A ''dayan'' has an additional '' Semicha '' (''yadin yadin'') which enables him to participate in such a court and adjudicate complex cases involving highly technical points of law.

''Battei din'' are required or preferred for the following matters:
  • Validation of Religious Bills Of Divorce (''get'', pl. ''gittim'');

  • '''' certification of restaurants and food manufacturers;

  • Examination of Shochet im and the control of the Shechita Inspectors

  • Monetary cases: Jews are exhorted ( Shulkhan Arukh , Choshen Mishpat 26) to have their civil cases judged by religious courts instead of taking their cases to secular judges (''arka'oth''); In modern practice, the litigating parties will sign an arbitration agreement agreeing to accept the judgment of the Beth Din as binding. In the event of non-compliance, the agreement may be taken to secular courts for enforcement with the permission of the Beth Din.

  • '' ("convert" or "proselyte") requires a ''beth din'' to be accepted into Judaism ; it is convened to determine whether or not a prospective convert is sufficiently prepared to enter the "Covenant of Abraham " and to join the Jewish people. At least one member of the court must be 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'' ) - some ''battei din'' hold local records of marriages and deaths within the community.

  • the authorisation and supervision of Mohel im.

  • Questions relating to Burial Practices And Mourning .




OFFICERS OF A BETH DIN

A large beth din may have the following officers

  • Av Beth Din (אב בית דין Father of the Court) is the most senior Jurist who may join in the Adjudication of cases or advise the presiding ''dayanim''. The ''av beth din'' will usually be a highly respected '' Rabbi '' and '' Posek '', who can give Responsa .

  • Rosh Beth Din (ראש בית דין Leader of the Court) equivalent to a Chief Justice , he will be the senior member of a three judge panel. In smaller courts the ''av beth din'', also serves as the ''rosh''.

  • Dayan (דין Rabbinic Judge) who sit and adjudicate cases. A rabbinic judge may directly question and Cross-examine Witness es.

  • Chaver Beth Din (חבר בית דין Friend of the Court, Amicus Curiae ) is an internal adviser to the court. He may bring specialised expertise to the ''beth din''. Often a ''chaver'' will be a ''dayan'' with training in secular law or science, who can share his experience and perspectives with the court. For example some ''battei din'' that deal with issues of , may have a ''chaver'' who is knowledgeable about Veterinary Medicine or Meat Science to assist the court, as an Expert Witness .



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