Questions clients ask

The get itself is given in the Rabbinical Court. On property, support and children both forums may have jurisdiction, and sometimes whoever files first decides where the case is heard. So it is worth taking advice before filing anything.

Most family proceedings now start with this request rather than a claim. Information and coordination meetings follow, and only if there is no agreement does litigation begin.

Under the Spouses (Property Relations) Law, for couples married from 1974 onward, each spouse is generally entitled to half the value of assets built up during the marriage, with exceptions such as pre-marital assets, inheritances and gifts. The date used to value the assets can also change the result.

From our cases: Division of assets: real estate valued also at the agreed separation date · All rulings

Often, yes. In HCJ 473/24 the Supreme Court held that after a get and a divorce judgment the Rabbinical Court has no jurisdiction over property claims to enforce the agreement; they are heard by the Family Court.

From our cases: The Rabbinical Court’s jurisdiction over property ends with the get · All rulings

An agreement approved by a court or rabbinical court has the force of a judgment. A clear monetary obligation can usually be enforced through the enforcement office, and a guarantor can be sued too. Disputes over interpretation, such as which support alternative applies, are decided by the court.

From our cases: A guarantor of a relocation agreement held liable for the full debt · The correct child-support alternative under a divorce agreement · All rulings

An asset not mentioned in the agreement is not treated as waived. If a spouse concealed an asset, you can ask that it be included in the division of assets, and sometimes challenge the agreement itself.

From our cases: An apartment concealed when a prenup was signed will be divided · All rulings

A properly approved agreement binds both sides. A court will set it aside only in exceptional cases, such as proven misrepresentation or coercion at signing.

From our cases: Claim to annul a prenuptial agreement dismissed · All rulings

The question is what the money was for: a loan, a joint investment, repayment of a debt or maintenance. It turns on the agreements, documents and conduct over the years, and on whether the issue was already decided in an earlier proceeding.

From our cases: An ex-husband’s claim to recover apartment money dismissed · All rulings

Possibly. When one spouse alone uses a jointly owned property, the court may order them to pay the other a use fee. It depends on the circumstances, such as whether and when the other spouse had to leave.

Since a 2017 Supreme Court ruling (FamA 919/15), for children aged 6 to 15 support is shared between parents according to income and parenting time. Other ages are treated differently.

An approved support agreement binds the parents. The children themselves may sue, but the court checks whether the agreement really disadvantages them, and interim relief is given only in exceptional cases.

From our cases: No interim housing support where support is set by a divorce agreement · All rulings

Relocating with children requires the other parent's consent or a court decision. A good relocation agreement sets out how contact with the parent who stays is kept: visits, video calls, who pays for flights, plus guarantees and agreed damages for breach. Courts enforce such agreements.

From our cases: Agreed damages to a father for breach of a relocation agreement · A guarantor of a relocation agreement held liable for the full debt · All rulings

The Convention aims to return quickly a child wrongfully removed from the country where they lived, so the proceedings are fast and you must act at once. There are exceptions, for example where the other parent consented or acquiesced, or where the parent was carrying out a judgment in their favour.

From our cases: A father who brought his son back to Israel under a judgment is not an abductor · Five children stay in Israel with their mother · All rulings

There is no single rule; the child's welfare decides. In a case where we petitioned the High Court, the mother was allowed to post as long as there was no concrete harm to the child and no commercial use of her image.

From our cases: The Rabbinical Court withdrew a ban on posting photos of the child · All rulings

An interim order is sometimes given before the hearing, sometimes by consent. At the hearing the accounts and evidence are examined, so come prepared and represented. A protection order also affects other proceedings between the spouses.

From our cases: Application for a protection order against our client dismissed · All rulings

You can apply to cancel it or to make leaving conditional on security. Jurisdiction also matters: the Great Rabbinical Court held that a rabbinical court in Israel has no jurisdiction over a person who is neither an Israeli resident nor a citizen.

From our cases: Exit ban on a non-resident husband cancelled and maintenance claim dismissed · All rulings

Only on the grounds in the Arbitration Law, for example where the award infringes the rights of someone who was not a party, or there was no valid arbitration agreement. Deadlines are short, so act quickly.

From our cases: Arbitration awards requiring our client to sell his share in an apartment set aside · Arbitration award confirmed and motion to set aside dismissed · All rulings

Yes. What you tell a lawyer for legal advice is protected by attorney-client privilege, even if you do not go on to retain the office.