Payment of Mezanot (child support)

In divorce and family law disputes it is usual for the court to require the father to pay Mezanot (child support) to the mother.The mother can collect the money either directly from the father or by  opening a file in the the office of execution.The mother can also open a file with Bituach Leumi .If the mother opens a file with Bituach Leumi or   הוצאה לפועלit is absolutely essential that the father pay directly  to these institutions and not directly to the mother.There are situations where the mother receives money from Bituach Leumi and also from the father.She is required to report any sums she receives from the father to bituach leumi  and to hoza lephoel but she often does not. This situation may cause serious problems for the father. It is essential that the father have proof of  every payment he made in order to avoid future problems and in order to prove to bituach leuimi and hoza lephoel that he has fullfiled his obligations  with the judgement against him and made the required payments.

Financial Agreements between Spouses

In Israel many spouses to not have financial agreements. Many couples assume that any assets that they acquire during marriage are joint assets. This not necessarily true.

The law allows couples do make any financial agreement that they decide to make. The law stipulates that the agreement must be In writing and it must be certified. The certification process depends on when the agreement is made and signed. Prior to the marriage the couple can appear in front of a Notary and sign the document and have it certified. The couple can also have the agreement certified before the the marriage registrar. These options are not available after the marriage. The couple after the marriage must appear before a judge of the family court or a religious court in order to certify the financial agreement.

In the absence of a financial agreement chapter 3 of the Law of Financial Relations between Couples will take effect. The law recognizes the fact that during the marriage each party has the sole ownership of his/and her property and the assets acquired during the marriage are not joint property .Of course if the couple bought an asset together and registered the property as joint property as is usual in the case when a couple purchases a home the property will be joint property. On the dissolution of the marriage or a breakdown in the marriage as defined in the law the assets acquired by each spouse during the marriage must be balanced, with the assets of the other spouse. This means in principal that each party to the marriage should have assets equal in value to the other party when the marriage is dissolved or breaks down. The court has the authority to determine how the balancing (איזון) should take place.

The assets to be balanced include pensions social and social benefits. The court may also take into account the earning potential of a spouse if it was acquired during the marriage. Although in principal the assets should be equalized the court in special situations has the right to balance the assets not equally. The issue is often complicated and often leads to endless litigation.

Couples would be wise to seek legal counsel and sign financial agreements which conform with their wishes , and not leave the matter to the courts to decide in the event of the dissolution or break down of the marriage.

The Right to Travel Abroad

Israeli basic law which has been held to be constitutional states that all persons in Israel may leave the country either permanently or for a trip abroad. In spite of the constitutional right to leave the country Israeli courts routinely issue orders to prohibit a person from going abroad. These orders are usually issued ex parte without a full hearing. The courts will issue such orders in order to insure that a parent usually a father will not leave Israel without providing guarantees that he will return, and continue to support his children and sometimes even his wife.
The order is issued by a registrar who usually will order a full hearing to hear all sides, whithin a short time after the order is issued.In a global economy there is always a danger that these orders will be abused and cause damage as many people travel abroad on business.
Nevertheless the courts have ruled that in balancing the various rights and interests of all the concerned parties these orders are necessary. The Rabbinical courts will also issue such orders to prevent a woman from being abandoned by her husband a situation which may leave her an Aguna.

Joint Parenthood Joint custody

Should the general rule be as it is today, the mother gets custody of the children, the father pays child support and only gets visitation rights? Many judges and even more social workers believe that this is how it should be.The issue is currently being discussed and the ministry of Justice has set up a committee to study the matter. It is clear that was common in the past need not continue.Children need both parents, equally and the law and the courts will need to move with the times and adopt a new approach to the issues of child custody.

מזונות לילדים

לעתים אנשים שואלים מהו סכום הכסף שהורה צריך לשלם כמזונות לילדים, ולמה בדרך כלל אביו של הקטין חייב לשלם
הכנסת חוקקה החוק לתיקון דיני משפחה שקבע ששני ההורים חייבים לשלם מזונות עבור ילדיהם כל אחד בהתאם להכנסותיו, החוק התיימר להיות שיוויוני
הבעייה היא שהחוק לא חל על אנשים שיש להם דין אישי, זאת אומרת זה לא חל על יהודים, מוסלמים, או נוצרים בני עדה מוכרת ולכן החוק חל רק על אנשים שאין להם דין אישי ושהם ללא דת בעיקר אלו אנשים שבאו ממדינות ברית המועצות לשעבר שאינם יהודים ואין להם דת אחרת
הדין הדתי היהודי, מחייב רק את האב לשלם מזונות עבור ילדיו עד גיל 15 ומגיל 15 ועד גיל 18 החובה לשלם מזונות חל גם על האב וגם על האם מדיני צדקה כתוצאה מכך, כאשר מדובר בהוצאות החיוניות לקטין שהסכום נע מסביב לסך של: 1300 ש"ח לחודש רק האב חייב לשאת בהוצאות אלו
כאשר מדובר בהוצאות מעבר להוצאות החיוניות כמו חוגים, בגדים מיוחדים, טיפול רפואי שאינו כלול בסל הבריאות והוצאות אחרות האב והאם חייבים בתשלומים אלו בהתאם להכנסותיהם. כאשר האב מחוייב לשלם מזונות הוא גם חייב לשלם עבור מדור לקטין זאת אומרת אם האם והילדים גרים בשכירות בנוסף למזונות האב יהיה חייב לשלם עבור הוצאות המדור דהיינו עלות של הקטין בהוצאות הדיור המורכבות משכר דירה, ארנונה, חשמל ומים
החובה לשלם מזונות היא חובה לקטין ולא לאם הקטין. אמנם התשלום הוא לאם הקטין אך היא מקבלת את התשלום כאפוטורופוס הטבעי של הקטין והכסף מיועד לצרכיו של הקטין
לפעמים הכלל הזה אינו ברור לצדדים, יש מצבים שהאם/האישה מסכימה לקבל סכום מזונות פחות מהמינימום לעיתים כדי לזכות בהסכמת הבעל לגירושין או לקבל את חלקו בדירה או עקב סיבות אחרות. הסכם כזה יכול לחייב רק את האישה אך לא הקטין ולכן, יש מקרים שלאחר אישור ההסכם והגירושין האם חוזרת ומגישה תביעה מחודשת למזונות עבור הקטין ותובעת סכום יותר גבוה מהסכום שנקבע בהסכם הגירושין.בית המשפט לענייני משפחה ברוב המקרים יפסוק מזונות בהתאם לצרכיו של הקטין ולא יתחשב בסכום שנקבע בהסכם הגירושין, מכיוון שהסכם הגירושין לא מחייב את הקטין. גם בית הדין הרבני פוסק סכום מזונות לקטינים אך בהעדר הסכמת האם לסמכות של בית הדין הרבני בעניין מזונות הקטין היא רשאית לתבוע מזונות עבור הקטין בבית המשפט לעניייני משפחה. הנושא הוא מאוד מורכב, דבר שמאפיין דיני משפחה בכלל ולכן רצוי להתייעץ עם עו"ד מומחה בנושא זה

Unmarried couples who live together

In Israel there are many couples who live together but do not get married. There are many reasons why couples choose not to get married. Marriage is Israel is possible only by a religious ceremony, there is no civil marriage. There are people who can not marry in a religious ceremony, for example a Jew cannot marry a non Jew in a religious ceremony and in the absence of civil marriage in Israel there is no way for them to be married. There are people who do not wish to marry in a religious ceremony be cause if one of the parties wishes to end the relationship with a divorce it is very difficult to get a divorce if both parties do not agree to a divorce.There are also couples who prefer not to marry because often marriage may cause one of the couples to receive lower social benefits.
Many couples are not aware of the fact that the so called informal staus of living together without marriage may cause serious legal implications. One example is para. 55 of the law of inheritance that states that in the absence of a will a couple who live together and meet the criterion of the law are deemed to have made a will which leaves the surviving spouse the share of the estate that he or she would have been entitled to if they were married.
The courts have ruled that couples who live together with a common household and have no formal agreement on the their financial relationship , it is assumed that they have chosen the regime of joint ownership of all property aquired during the period of the relationship in spite of the fact that the property may be registered on the name of only one of the parties to the relationship.

The child is not mine why do I have to support him?

Modern medical science has made it possible to determine the paternity of children.The process of tissue testing allows for genetic analysis and a 99% accuracy rate on the paternity of a child.
In spite of the accuracy of the test courts in Israel both the secular Family court and the religious Rabbinical court often will not allow the test. The reason for the reluctance to compel the test is that the results may prove that the father of the child is not the husband of the mother. In the case of a married Jewish woman,if she engaged in sex with a man other than her husband and had a child from the relationship the child under Jewish Law is a Mamzer(bastard) and will be prohibited from marrying a kosher Jewish spouse.
The courts and the law are not interested in this outcome and therefore in the case of a married woman the courts will not allow genetic testing because the outcome could damage the future of the child.
In one case whichI had in the Rabbinical court in Netanya I petitioned the court to compel a medical examination to determine if my client is the father of the child. I argued Science can provide the answer. The court refused to order the test . My clients cry that if the child is not his why does he have to support him was of no avail.The court required him to pay child support .