Jewish Divorce and the Recalcitrant Husband - Refusal to Give a Get as Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

Since the giving of the law on Mount Sinai more than three thousand years ago, a distinct legal system has governed the Jewish people. One of the areas included in Jewish law is domestic relations. As a result, when an American Jewish couple marries in a Jewish ceremony two distinct legal systems re...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Cobin, David M. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Univ. Press 1986
In: Journal of law and religion
Year: 1986, Volume: 4, Issue: 2, Pages: 405-430
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Summary:Since the giving of the law on Mount Sinai more than three thousand years ago, a distinct legal system has governed the Jewish people. One of the areas included in Jewish law is domestic relations. As a result, when an American Jewish couple marries in a Jewish ceremony two distinct legal systems recognize the marriage: American civil law and Jewish law. If the marital relationship breaks down and one or both parties want a divorce American law requires that the moving party brings an action in a court of law. Assuming proper grounds exist, the court will order a divorce and American law will consider the marriage terminated. Jewish law, however, will consider the parties still married until such time as distinct Jewish legal procedures are performed. Jewish law requires that the husband give his wife a bill of divorcement, known as a get. If the husband refuses to give his wife a get, she cannot remarry in accordance with Jewish law. Such a woman, in Jewish terminology, is an Agunah, a chained woman.With the increase of divorces in American Jewish society has come an increased number of Agunot. A further result has been legal activity, in courts and at least one legislature, to encourage or even force a recalcitrant husband to give his wife a get.
ISSN:2163-3088
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of law and religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2307/1051005