Panel okays bill to force anorexia hospi... JPost - National News

Panel okays bill to force anorexia hospitalization... JPost - National News


Kadima MK Adatto says doctors asked her to prepare bill to help eating disorder sufferers who refuse treatment.

In Israel, a New Approach to Organ Donation - NYTimes.com

In Israel, a New Approach to Organ Donation - NYTimes.com

According to the article, on April 1, 2012, the new system for organ donation in Israel will commence. Under this system, "if two patients have identical medical needs for an organ transplant, priority will be given to the patient who has signed a donor card, or whose family member has donated an organ in the past."

Man Gets Life Sentence for Refusing to Give His Wife a Divorce

In the past we have discussed some of the details of the process of Jewish divorce an recalcitrant husbands and wives (see here). The JPost reports that the rabbinical court has recently imposed a life sentence on a man for refusing to give his wife a gett or bill of divorce.

In the hearing in November, details of which have only now been released, the panel of rabbinical judges – headed by rabbinical supreme court president Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger – ruled against Gorodetzki. In a creative interpretation of the law, the judges ruled that it is Gorodetzki himself who is restricting his own freedom, as well as that of his wife, and that he holds the keys to his personal liberty.

“If the appellant is released from prison before he has divorced his wife, she will remain an agunah (a woman bound to her husband) for ever… Anyone who allows this would be considered as if they had shed her blood,” Metzger said during the hearing.

“The keys to your release are in your own hands… through the fulfillment of your obligations as a Jew. Release your wife and then you will receive your freedom,” Metzger told him.

Who Needs to Pay for the Installation of an Elevator in an Apartment Building?

Q: In my building, the apartment owners want to install an elevator, but I live on the ground floor. Do I need to chip in and pay for the installation or maintenance of the elevator?

A: First to reiterate the disclaimer: This blog is for information purposes only; it is not a source for legal advice. We do not accept any liability to any person who does rely on the content of this website.

That being said, Section 59(F) of the Land Law deals with the law regarding installation of an elevator in a building. The law says that 2/3 of the apartment owners in a building can vote to install an elevator. Those who vote for the elevator must pay for its installation except that ground floor owners can vote for the installation but are  not required to pay for it. On the other hand, all apartment owners (including ground floor owners) are obligated to pay for the costs of maintenance and repair of the elevator unless a majority of the apartment owners who own 2/3 of the common property of the building vote to insert language in the the articles of association to suspend the provisions of this section.

So it appears that you would not need to pay for the installation of the elevator but you would have to pay for maintenance and repairs unless you can get the other owners to exempt you.

Although it may seem strange that a ground floor owner needs to pay for the maintenance and repairs of the elevator, I think the rationale is that the elevator increases the value of all the apartments in the building (not to mention that it makes it easier to visit your friends upstairs). 

There are some buildings where only the owners who have paid for the installation of the elevator have a key to use it. It seems that such a practice would be legitimate if voted on and included in the articles of association.

The text of the law is after the jump:

Is Lack Of Gender-Segregation Discriminatory?

With all of the tension in Israel these days about religious groups and gender segregation there was an interesting development a couple of months ago. A woman in Israel was denied unemployment benefits after she turned down a job for which she was qualified for because the workplace was not segregated by gender. An interesting post about this decision can be found at the Life in Israel Blog.