The Supreme Court this week ordered the Chief Rabbinate to pay the petitioners legal expenses totaling 15,000 shekels.
The decision was issued following a petition regarding the management of rabbinical examinations for women held last month.
In their decision, the judges wrote that the payment was ordered "in light of the petitioners’ statements, in the absence of opposition by the respondents to the very obligation to pay expenses, and taking into account the considerations detailed in the request and the response."
In the most recent examinations, three women arrived to take the test, but the exam booklets were not given to them even after several hours. The petitioners then turned again to the court in order to implement the decision.
Late last year, the Supreme Court ordered that women be allowed to take the rabbinical ordination exams. In response, the Chief Rabbinate indicated that it would comply with the ruling and allow women to take the exams. At the same time, the Chief Rabbinate stressed that that the purpose of the exams is to test Torah knowledge only and that passing them does not automatically grant rabbinical certification.
“To receive eligibility to serve in a rabbinical position, additional conditions are required-such as several years of study, personal interviews, and a lifestyle consistent with the rabbinical role," the Chief Rabbinate's statement noted.