The NSW Jewish Board of Deputies plenum of June 18 resolved to establish a Sydney Beth Din Working Group.
The motion, put forward by Robert Goot AM SC and seconded by Melissa McCurdie, was passed overwhelmingly by the plenum.
The purpose of the working group is to assist the Sydney Beth Din (SBD) by making recommendations regarding administration, governance, case management, handling of complaints, termination (for misconduct) of Dayanim, and practice and procedure. The aim is to assist the SBD in its own internal review to ensure ongoing compliance with Australian law and the highest standards of natural justice and procedural fairness, while at the same time remaining faithful to the halachic rules and principles governing civil dispute resolution.
The working group will be chaired by the President of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies, and its members will be three practising Orthodox members of the Australian Jewish community, including a Deputy and a Rabbi.
The Beth Din welcomed the offer of assistance and looks forward to working with the committee.
The working group comprises:
Rabbi Marcus Solomon SC – who has provided pro bono legal assistance to many Jewish organisations in
Perth, Melbourne and Sydney, including governance reviews and drafting of constitutions, and is
Governor of the Board of Carmel School in Perth and rabbi of Dianella Shul Mizrachi, Perth.
Jacquie Seemann Charak – a partner at Thomson Geer Lawyers, member of the NSW Jewish Board of
Deputies Education Committee, member of the Board of Or Chadash Synagogue, AUJS and Together for
Humanity Foundation, and Honorary Solicitor of Maccabi NSW.
Philip Stern – an Adjunct Associate Professor of Law at the University of Notre Dame, a partner of large
commercial law firms for 30 years, Honorary Solicitor for the Australian Jewish Historical Society, former
Director and Legal Advisor to Kesser Torah College.
A progress report on the deliberations of the working group will be presented at the November 19
plenum.
