A couple divorced ten months ago in accordance with Jewish law at the regional rabbinical court in Be'er Sheva. At the end of the divorce hearing, as with any divorce, the rabbinical judges determined that the woman was permitted to any man after 90 days.
A month ago, exactly nine months later, the woman reappeared in the rabbinical court with a new partner after having given birth to a baby; The two sought to register the baby as their daughter.
In these circumstances, in which the baby is born nine months from the date of divorce without the three-month waiting period as required, there is concern that the baby might be halakhically classified as a “mamzer,” a baby born from a relationship strictly prohibited by the Torah. A mamzer is disallowed from marrying most fellow Jews.
The complex and delicate story was directed by the Attorney General to a special panel of the Be'er Sheva rabbinical court. The court investigated in depth the applicant, her ex-husband and her new partner and examined all the medical documents and gynecological reports.
In an 11-page ruling, Rabbi Yehuda Deri, the head of the tribunal, dealt with a series of halakhic issues concerning the special circumstances.
After reviewing the halakhic literature from the days of the Shulchan Aruch up until the present day, he ruled that, even though the baby was born without a waiting period and nine months from the date of divorce, she is the daughter of the new partner and is permitted to marry any Jewish man, including a Cohen, who is subject to various additional restrictions regarding whom he is permitted to marry.