Question: I am about to vacate an apartment that I have been renting for the past year. Just found out that the property manager is jewish and possibly the owner of the company as well. According to my contract I am entitled to receive my deposit plus interest? Is there a problem for me to […]
Author Archives: Admin-EN
Keeping Others’ Money In My Bank Account
Question: I manage my family’s different savings accounts under separate accounts in my bank, under my main bank account. Is there any problem in doing this, as in the end I will be passing on the total account to them? Answer: If you yourself use the money in these accounts, even occasionally, for yourself, then […]
Expressing Appreciation For A Loan
Question: If somebody lends me money… Can I tell him “I appreciate” ? Answer: It is forbidden to pay any kind of interest on a loan, and this includes even something purely verbal, such as blessing the lender for lending you the money. To say “Thank you,” however, is permitted by some (though not all) […]
Lending Money For A Wedding and Then Attending the Wedding
Question: I loaned a person approximately USD 5000 as he was making a wedding. We have been friends for years – part of the same kehilla but I wouldn’t be invited to weddings. Since the loan he feels very indebted and it feels like we are breaching Ribis D’varim. 1/ How long after the loan […]
Hetter Iska – Written or Oral?
Question: Two shilos in regards to Heter Iska 1. Does it need to be written or is agreed upon enough? 2. Do both parties have to sign it? Answer: Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (66:7) writes that a Hetter Iska should be written, but bsha’as hadechak (if difficult to arrange) an oral agreement is sufficient. It is […]
Bonding With The State
Question: Is there any problem with investing in Israel Bonds in terms of ribbis? My wife has some money coming due and my father-in-law is asking if we want to continue to invest in Israel Bonds sold in the US. Answer: Israel Bonds are a halachic concern in terms of ribbis. There are a number of solutions. […]
Split Seam In A Hired Wedding Dress
Question: Kvod harabonim Shlita: I am in the wedding gown rental business. I rent both used and new gowns. The Kalla who rents knows whether her gown is new or used. The price of rental depends on the appearance, condition and the amount of work involved in personalizing the garment to the fit and taste […]
Lost Credit Voucher
Question: An educational institute wanted to honour one of their supporters, and so they asked me to purchase a silver dish on their behalf for him, which they paid me for. Subsequently, they decided it wasn’t suitable and they asked me to return it to the store. I did so, and the store gave me […]
I took A Different Contractor For Phase 2 of the Job
Question: A friend of mine hired someone to do a job for him in 2 phases & a price was agreed upon. the worker did the first phase and then a different worker that was doing work in his house did the 2nd phase of the work done by the original guy. my friend asked […]
Discontinuing the Employment of A Melamed
Question: If I could trouble you for an indication of minhag botei dinim in EI and USA with regard to the sacking of a Melamed where it seems the Melamed is academically and teaching-wise competent but it seems that the school board don’t want him for one or both of the following reasons: 1) hashkofodig too shtark for […]
Severance Pay For An Employee Who Didn’t Work Well
Question: I have a worker in my clothing store for over 2 years now. Right in the beginning she was quite good, and we were both happy. Lately (already several months by now) her marriage problems that she had the entire time got much worse. By being overly busy with lawyers, her children, police emergencies, […]
Kinyan To Be Mechazek A Commitment
Question: Could you provide me with clear guidelines when we say that a maasei kinyan is “mechazeik devarim” and therefore not a ”kinyan Devorim bialma”? For example, Shut Ritva 117 (partially quoted by BY 333) states that an employment contract is binding because of the kinyan (and we do not say עבדי הם…), whereas the Shach there (14) says that […]
Backing Out of A Commitment When Not Given Opportunity To Proceed
Question: I received deposit and signed contract to build and sell house to Joe. I could not build because neighbor of project pulled me in to litigation both secular and din torah. This has been going on for about 7 years now with no end in sight. I would like to return deposit to Joe […]
Paying a Babysitter On Time
Question: I pay my child’s babysitter at the end of the week, as per our agreement. Is this a kiyum of b’yomo titen scharo? Answer: It depends. If the day you pay is the last day that she actually works, you have performed the mitzvah. (If the work ends during the day, you must pay […]
Dismissal Compensation
Question: I was hired to work for someone on a contract type basis to edit a project- he agreed to pay me a monthly fee for the estimated six years that he thought the project would last. Without any notice, he cancelled the entire project, after I had been working for him for several months. […]
Filing Complaint
Question: I recently stayed at a hotel in Israel probably owned by Jews, and had a small service issue arise. If I were to complain to the Cust. Service of the Hotel Chain [Worldwide, not owned by Jews] I would recieve some form of compensation. I assume though that this will come at the expense […]
Job Interviews
Question: I have recently been given the job of interviewing several candidates for an assistant position for someone who will be working as my assistant at my office. My boss handed me several resumes of people he is interested in me interviewing. One of the people is a friend of mine, whom I really don’t […]
Who Gets the Shadchanus Money?
Question: I would appreciate if you can give me an answer. I don’t know whom to ask. My son B recently got engaged and a few people are claiming that they deserve to get paid as Shadchan.This is the story: The girl works with somebody by the name of Frankel* and she kept on nudging […]
Getting Even with Egged
Question: I take a bus to work. Sometimes one or even 2 buses don’t show up or the wrong number is shown in the window so I don’t get on the bus and therefore I have to take a taxi to work to get there on time. Can I not pay them when I can […]
Medical Malpractice
Question: While performing a root canal by a Jewish dentist, the drill bit broke and 2 pieces remained embedded inside the tooth. All attempts to extract them failed. The tooth will have to be extracted and replaced by implant. This episode will end off costing me in excess of 1,000 out of my pocket.. Do […]
Barking Dog
Question: My neighbors have a dog that barks into the night, waking up my kids sometimes, and disturbing everyone in the area both day and night. They are two k’nisas over, and I can’t imagine they don’t realize that this is bothering people, they clearly don’t care. Is it mutar for me to poison and […]
Signing A Contract Without Reading It
Question: I recently applied for life insurance, which involved signing several documents in the presence of an agent. I basically just signed them without reading them, following the directions of the agent. But then I saw that one of the papers said something like “I have read and understood the foregoing document. The agent has […]
Stolen Tzeddaka
Question: My wife left her car window open in a parking lot of a shopping centre in Johannesburg. The car was locked. There are car guards who watch over the cars. When she returned to her car she discovered that two tzedoka boxes that she had left in a closed compartment (not visible to the […]
Mixed Up Charity Money
Question: On Erev Yom Kippur, the bima in Shul fell and along with it went all the bowls of tzedoko tumbling to the floor. All the money is now mixed up – what should one do? Answer: If there is no one in particular responsible for the tzedakah money, while it’s difficult to clearly delineate […]
Can I Give This Mezuzah To Tzedakah?
Question: I bought a mezuzah and told a friend that I would not give it away but keep it and use it myself. I then bought another mezuzah and said that I will give the first mezuzah to a poor person who really needs it. I then recalled my original words that I would not […]
Promised Wedding Gift
Question: I had a torah vort book which I had decided to give to someone as a wedding gift and even informed him about it. However, it’s been difficult for me to go to his house and deliver it. Am I obligated to do this, as in a neder for tzedaka? Answer: If the receipient […]
Stolen Tzedaka Check
Question: If money one collected for an organization was then given over to a shaliach where the money was stolen and one stopped the check (which involved a cost), a) can one take out that money from maaser b) if one doesn’t and one received a present (2 days later) for can one consider that […]
Buying A Lottery Ticket With Ma’aser Money
Question: Are you allowed to give your maaser money to a charity organization where you get something in return, i.e. a free gift or win something in a auction. For example am I allowed to use my maaser money to buy tickets in the Oorah auction? Thank you Answer: With regard to the free gift […]
Obligation To Stop Giving?
Question: I support needy families around the — area, and started doing that when I was in yeshiva in — and continue to fund those families there. No-one know I do this, and the families know what i do, but don’t know it is me. It is costing me roughly with, clothing, food, and yeshiva […]
When Calculating Income For Ma’aser Purposes, What About Expenses?
Question: I am giving charity now before the end of the financial year (June) and I want to try give 10% of my income to charity. I am trying to work out what to give 10% of. Obviously taxation is not included at income so a net figure (after tax) is used. In Australia (I […]
Who May Receive Charity Funds?
Question: Hello, I have a question that perhaps you can help me with. I am single and in my early thirties. I am not working. I am on a medication for depression. I was going for therapy. I do have money saved up for things like a wedding, a car and day to day expenses […]
Bought and sold a defective product
Question: Reuven bought an item from Shimon for $1000, but Shimon defrauded him and the item was worthless. Reuven did not know that he was duped and sold the item to Levi. Is Reuven chayav to refund to Levi or could he claim that he had no idea that he was duped by shimon and […]
Store guarantee for faulty merchandise
Question: I have a sign in my store saying that I am not a manufacturer but only an importer, and therefore I cannot take responsibility on anything that happens with the clothing AFTER it was used. However I will do my best to try and get whatever I can possibly get for them, from the […]
Renegotiating a sale after signing a contract
Question: If I shook hands with a prospective seller and signed a contract to purchase a house for a set price and prior to the closing the market conditions had reduced the market value of similar houses would we then be permitted to renegotiate the price or is it subject to mee sheporah? Thanks. Answer: […]
Selling a house with defects
Question: Does an Israeli homeowner have a responsibility to the future homeowner all the defects of the home he/she is selling? Or is it the future homeowner’s responsibility to hire a home inspector? Answer: It depends what type of defects are involved. If there are defects that are not apparent to a purchaser, the seller […]
Employer’s Responsibility for Employee’s Transactions
Question: I went to a nearby moshav to print some pictures. It is a special job and the computer files needed to be altered before printing. I spent a long time at this printers until the girl altered a picture and printed me a sample that I was happy with. She told me she would […]
Chipped Item in Store
Question: I bought a delicate vase and asked the store employees to wrap it up for me. They sent me back and forth and told me to bring a box from outside. While I wrapped it in newspaper so in the meanwhile it shouldn’t chip, I lightly hit the side of the cart and it […]
Buying a “Tester” Bottle
Question: Is there a problem with buying an item (in this case a bottle of perfume) on an auction site (like ebay.com) that is described as being a “tester” (or store sampler for display)? The actual item is very expensive in stores and as a tester, considerably cheaper on the site. The box it comes […]
The Gambler Who Never Loses
Question: I have a friend who is a mathematician and has developed a formula to win money on online casinos. It wins every time – there is no real betting involved. It is perfectly legal and I would like to know if it is halachically permissible. Answer: It’s not clear from the question exactly what […]
Free booklets?
Question: I work in the receiving end of a Publishing House. We just received from our printers a shipment of thin pamphlets 320 per box. On the outside of the box they taped (with packaging tape) a few copies on the outside of the box – to show what was inside. These were taped in […]
Tefillin bought on eBay
Question: A very old pair of tefillin were on sale on eBay for . The seller is from Israel. He advertised the tefillin as being made of leather and wood. I have two questions: 1. Was I obligated to inform the seller that all tefillin are never made of anything but 100% animal products? (I […]
Check that was passed on and then bounced
Question: About one year ago, I had paid for something I bought with a check. it took some time and then I found out that the check bounced. I returned to the person whom I paid to in order to give him the money I owe, but he said, he had passed the check on […]
The Underpriced Dali
Question: My wife and I once sold really cheap what we thought were two prints, 1) a Chagal, and 2) a Salvador Dali. Mu mother-in-law, who gave them to us, just informed us that the Salvador Dali was in fact a signed lithograph and is worth between $2000-$2500. Do we have any recourse to try […]
Ani hamehapech – snatching a deal
Question: I approached the prospective seller of an apartment intending to close a deal to purchase it, only to find him seated with another person interested in the apartment. I am familiar with the principle of עני המהפך בחררה, according to which it is ethically reprehensible to snatch a deal from another Jew when I could […]
Din or Peshoro?
Question: When litigants sign a Shtar Borrerus (Deed of Arbitration) in Beis Din, it usually states that the Dayanim are given the authority to rule either according to the strict Din or by way of Peshoroh (compromise). Why does Beis Din not rule always according to the Din? Answer: Our shtar borrerus has a clause […]
Is a Beth Din required to provide a reason for its ruling?
Question: Is a Beth Din required to provide a reason for its ruling? Answer: According to the Halacha, usually a Beis Din is not required to provide a reasoning for its ruling. If, however, the Dayanim perceive that the losing party suspects that the Beis Din has ruled against him for unfair reasons, the Beis […]
Claim against a public company
Question: I have a dispute with Orange cellular phone Company in Israel. I want to go to the small claims court off Yaffo. I want to know if I have to take them to beis din 1st? I was verbally told that calls to a specific number were free, by an Orange Employee. I signed […]
Differing languages in Beis Din
Question: Sholem uvroche, 2 Yiden come to a Din Toiro. Both speak russian. The claimant speaks Hebrew fluently, the defendandt understands Hebrew, but cannot defend his cause in Hebrew, because he is not fluent enough in spoken Hebrew, but is fluent in German. which the claimant understands a bit, but cannot speak. Dayonim speak German […]
Claimant who refuses to go to Beis Din
Question: I am in a dispute with my contractor. He claims I still owe him money, however I dispute it. I have told him many times to take me to beis din and he does not want to take me to court or to beis din. What is my obligation ? Answer: If you are […]
Employer owes money
Question: I did work for a jewish person.He owes a large amount but denies owing anything. Knowing that this person will not go to ” DIN TORAH” what my option? Answer: The correct procedure is to contact a Beis Din and request that they send him a summons to appear at a Din Torah. If […]