Since the number of scholars has declined and few people remain qualified to serve as judges, only a small number of communities in the kingdom now possess a court of three judges qualified according to Talmudic law. Our ancestors were therefore compelled to depart from strict Talmudic requirements when establishing rules for the selection of judges.

Unless every town has authorized judges who can hear claims and complaints and punish offenders, disorder will prevail and neither men nor women will be secure. The world rests upon justice, truth and peace, and where the Torah isn’t properly administered, there can be no peace.

We therefore ordain that every community shall select judges to decide its legal cases. The members of the community shall formally accept the authority of those judges.

If the community cannot agree upon its judges within the prescribed period, it shall notify the Rabbi of the Court. He shall appoint the judges, and the community and its officers shall be required to obey his decision. The same procedure shall apply to the selection of other communal officers, who shall serve for one year.

Authority of the judges

Those appointed as judges in each community shall possess authority, for as long as this ordinance remains in force, to decide disputes, claims and quarrels arising between one person and another according to Talmudic law. With the consent of the local rabbi and three of the city’s most respected communal leaders, they may also impose fines and other punishments.

The judges must respect the privileges granted by our lord the king to Don Abraham, the Rabbi of the Court. Anyone who believes that a local judgment has treated him too severely may appeal to Don Abraham for relief.

Litigants shall appear when summoned by the judges. Anyone who fails to appear shall pay one gold coin to the charitable fund for the first offense, three gold coins for the second and ten gold coins for the third, in addition to any other punishment imposed by the judges.

Impartial judges

If a Jewish man or woman has a complaint against a judge, or if a judge has a claim against a member of the community, the judge and the opposing party shall appear before one of the judge’s colleagues. If no other judge is available, the community shall appoint one or more judges within three days to hear the case.

The same procedure shall apply when the local judges are related to one of the litigants or are considered that person’s friends or enemies under Talmudic law. A judge may not hear a case involving himself or one of his relatives unless the other litigant has formally agreed to accept him as judge.

Special judges and appeals

If most members of a community believe that a dispute shouldn’t be entrusted to their local judges, they may ask the Rabbi of the Court to send another judge. If the rabbi concludes that the situation is urgent and that failure to intervene would harm the community, he shall appoint a God-fearing man to serve for the period requested.

The community shall accept that judge’s decisions. The Rabbi of the Court may not send an outside judge against the community’s wishes unless the required majority has submitted the request.

Every judge must permit a dissatisfied litigant to appeal to the Rabbi of the Court within a reasonable period. The appellant shall provide security for the costs and swear that the appeal is based on a sincere belief that the judgment was unjust rather than an attempt to delay its execution.

Christian courts

No Jewish man or woman shall bring another Jew before a Christian ecclesiastical or secular judge, even if that judge promises to decide the case according to Jewish law. Matters involving royal taxes, coinage, the rights of the king or queen, church property or the rights of the local Christian lord are exceptions.

A person who violates this rule shall be excommunicated and excluded from ordinary relations with the community. The offender shall also pay one thousand maravedís to the person harmed by the accusation or to another recipient selected by the Rabbi of the Court.