EXCLUSIVE: Beth Din agrees no role for rabbis over ‘coercive control’ - The Jewish Chronicle

The London Beth Din has distanced itself from the Federation of Synagogues over new legislation relating to religious divorce, saying it was not for the rabbis to “decide whether a man is breaking the law or not”.

Last month, the Federation Beth Din warned that it would refuse to approve a get (religious divorce) for any woman who had initiated a criminal prosecution against her husband for “coercive and controlling behaviour” under the new Domestic Abuse Act.

The Federation’s statement led to uproar, with the Chief Rabbi convening meetings between the rabbinical courts, parliamentarians, lawyers, communal bodies and women’s rights campaigners.

The JC can reveal that the Home Office slapped down an initial proposal from the Batei Din that they should be allowed to determine — via the Statutory Guidance on the Act, which is out for consultation — whether or not “coercive control” has been exercised by a person refusing to give a get.

A Whitehall source said that ministers had been lobbied extensively, but that the idea that only someone who has been declared recalcitrant by a beth din can be considered to be a source of coercive control was met with “incredulity” by ministers and the proposal was “strongly rebuffed”.

As a result of the Home Office’s firm stance and soundings taken at the meetings arranged by the Chief Rabbi, the London Beth Din has distanced itself from the Federation’s original statement.

A spokesman for the London Beth Din confirmed to the JC this week that, “It’s for the English courts to decide what’s coercive or not. This — coercive control — would be a criminal act, and it’s for the court to decide whether a man is breaking the law or not. It’s nothing to do with the dayanim”.

By contrast, the Federation told the JC it was seeking “to ensure that the guidance will not lead to situations in which people might misemploy the legislation to place themselves in a position in which any subsequent get would be voided as a matter of Halachah, which would make it infinitely harder for the Beth Din to aid them in getting a valid Jewish divorce”.

The London Beth Din, Sephardi Bet Din and Federation are negotiating jointly with the government over the Statutory Guidance.

The Statutory Guidance on domestic abuse, which includes a section on Jewish religious divorce and two case studies of women who have been refused a get, has been out for consultation since August 3 and is scheduled to close on September 14. Any member of the public with a view on the issue is able to respond online.

A Home Office spokesperson told the JC: “The statutory guidance supports implementation of the definition introduced through the Act, and reiterates that domestic abuse can include, for example, controlling or coercive behaviour, psychological and spiritual abuse. We want to ensure that victims of all types of domestic abuse can be supported and tackle perpetrators”.

With reporting by Jenni Frazer

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