Monthly Archives: February 2010
Shortcomings of secular reasoning
Stanley Fish’s 2/22/10 Opinionator article, Are There Secular Reasons?, highlights an argument made by Steven Smith in “The Disenchantment of Secular Discourse,” that pure analytical reasoning, without reference to religion or philosophical principles, is impossible. Fish writes: It is not, Smith tells us, that secular reason can’t do the job (of identifying ultimate meanings and […]
More on Brisman v. HAFTR
A copy of the Amicus Brief filed by Agudah, Torah Umesorah and the OU on behalf Nachum Brisman can be found here.
Appellate Division reverses decision and order that vacated Beth Din award
The New York Appellate Division, Second Department, reversed an order of the New York Supreme Court that vacated an arbitration award by the Beth Din of America. The Supreme Court order vacated the award of the Beth Din which reinstated a tenured teacher at a salary greater than that agreed upon in the teacher’s contract. […]
Former Rep. Wexler on the Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act
The Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act of 2010, H.R. 4596, is a scaled down version of a bill proposed in the House in 2007, which I noted last week was not passed. The 2007 bill (H.R. 1746) would have created a federal Holocaust Insurance Registry and a separate federal cause of action for Holocaust insurance policy […]
Holocaust Insurance Accountability Act of 2010
In an Op-Ed for JTA in December 2009, U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) wrote: Although more than 60 years have passed since the world witnessed the atrocities committed by Hitler’s regime, many Holocaust-era compensation issues remain unresolved. One of these issues includes the continued failure of insurance companies to pay Holocaust survivors or families of […]
Rabbi Max Sutton on contract performance
Rabbi Max Sutton, Rosh Bet Din Aram Soba in Jerusalem, published an article, “Time is Money,” in the February 2010 issue of Community. Using cases that have come before the bet din, the article discusses the halachot of contract performance, the duty to inspect merchandise, and the timeliness of objections to incomplete performance. Rabbi Sutton […]
Comment on Avrohom’s post, Zargary v. City of New York
This was initially a comment to Avrohom’s post, Prisoner’s “Free Exercise Clause” claim fails despite New York City’s failure to provide her with a rabbi at 3:30 am. It grew into its own post. My initial take is that the court is conflating two issues — 1) whether a prisoner in general is entitled under […]
Prisoner’s “Free Exercise Clause” claim fails despite New York City’s failure to provide her with a rabbi at 3:30 am.
The New York Law Journal yesterday reports a decision from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. A Jewish inmate in NYC sued the city of New York because a Department of Corrections officer forced her to remove her “religious headdress” (?) prior to taking an intake photo at a prison […]
Insight into the Solomon Dwek matter
After five days of testimony by Solomon Dwek in the Leona Beldini trial, including three days of grueling cross-examination, I have one critical observation. The name of the Assistant U.S. Attorney? Sandra Moser.
Of interest 2/3/10
- Rabbi Ari Enkin summarizes Rabbi Y.H. Henkin’s views on family planning. Note that family planning is a controversial area of halacha, and Rabbi Henkin’s views are not universal. Note also that what is or isn’t appropriate is fact sensitive, and decisions should be made in consultation with rabbinic authority. – A short essay by […]
