In the days of Ottoman rule, authority regarding issues of personal status was given to the religious courts of each separate religious group. After theestablishment of the State of Israel, the Jewish, Muslim, Druze, and various Christian religious courts continued to operate as before. These individual authorities were established in the civil law, decreed in 1953 (the particular statute is known as "the law declaring rule by rabbinic courts").
This law means that in Israel, no path exists to purely civil marriage. Notwithstanding the fact that Israel recognizes the marriage of a couple that married only civilly outside of Israel, marriage within Israel must be conducted according to one of the available religious ceremonies: Jewish, Muslim, or Christian.If one of the two wishing to marry is either not a member of a religion, not identified with any religion, or does not qualify for marriage according to the laws ofthe pertinentreligion [1], then the couple may not wed in Israel.
Mamzerim are halachically defined as "unfit for marriage" and are therefore prevented from marrying in Israel even if they and their spouses are secular. Additionally, the country does not recognize Conservative or Reform Jewish marriages, and shockingly, these movements advise their members to either marry by an Orthodox ceremony in Israel??? or obtain a civil marriage outside of Israel in addition to a private Jewish ceremony.
The mechanism known as "common law marriage"acquires an unmarried, co-habitating couple the tax same breaks and inheritance perksthat amarried couple has. This legal status takes effect only after a minimum period of co-habitation; because the law does not define the financial aspects of a couple married by common law, it is recommended that they sort these isues out a priori with a legal authority. As with marriage, the only tracks by which to obtain a divorce in Israel are religious in nature.Only in a case where one spouse is not technically Jewish- as is often the case with olim from the former Soviet Union- can a couple obtain an annulment, by appealing to the rabbinic high court [2]. And as easy as it might be to get married in another country, a couple with only Israeli citizenship may only get divorced in Israel - meaning, only by means of a rabbinic court.
The rabbinic court has unmatched authority over issues of marriage and divorce. However, with every post-divorce issue- property division, alimony, child support and custody- Israel has two parallel legal authorities: these issues can be decided in the rabbinic court and in the family court. While ostensibly the two systems operate by the same basic precepts of equal apportionment and prioritized consideration to what is in the child's best interest, in reality there are large discrepancies in modus operandi between the two courts. In most instances, the civil court is considered more "women-friendly", and the rabbinic court is considered more helpful to men. That said, in some situations none of the above principles apply and each court operates according to its own rules.
When two spouses wishing to divorce manage to reach a divorce agreement, they must have the agreement notarized by either the family court or the rabbinic court. Although one can write up this type of agreement outside of the legal system, in many cases, the issues of custody and property division can arouse disagreements and fights, and sometimes it becomes necessary to bring the issues to court, in order to reach a legally-binding agreement, decided by a judge or rabinnic judge who employs certified legal principles in his decision-making.After an agreement has been reached, one party must file for divorce in a rabbinic court.
Mutual filing by both spouses for "no-fault divorce" results in a relatively simple divorce process, while a divorce filed only by one party can result in a long and tension-filled series of deliberations in court. Spouses need not agree on a preferred court in which to file their divorce; each spouse may file for divorce in either court. If the husband files a divorce in rabbinic court and integrates stipulations for alimony, custody and property divisions, the woman is bound to the rabbinic court's authority regarding these matters and may not file her own divorce papers in a civil court.
These facts spawnthe phenomenon known as "the race to authorities:"a spouse who feels the onset of a marital crisis is aware that the other spouse can rush to file for divorce in the court of choice, and thus meaningfully affect the outcome of divorce proceedings. This awareness causes stress, concern and distrust, and makes attempts to restore the marriage difficult; at times, it will foil the attempts alltogether, when the couple has entered divorce proceedings prematurely (following one spouse's hasty filing in the court of choice).Theconstant state of stress brought on by divorce proceedings certainly makes the painful process of property divisions and family separation no easier.
[1]From here on I will refer to Jews, although it should be noted that there are Muslim women who find themselves in a parallel situation to that of agunot and mesuravot get.
[2]The high court will then refer the case to the appropriate circuit, such as the family court. Taken from "annulment of intermarriages," http://www.gerushin.co.il/, 2005.