A Fateful Settlement: How the Issue of Theocracy Was Avoided in Kiryas Joel
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In the Satmar Village of Kiryas Joel, dissidents claimed that village officials exercise the powers of government in furtherance of religious law, in violation of both the American constitutional principle of separation between religion and state and the Satmar belief that Jews must separate themselves from worldly affairs. A judge appeared receptive to the argument that the village operates as a theocracy—until the dissidents agreed to settle out of court. That agreement, which included a strict provision obligating the parties to submit all future disputes to rabbinic rather than secular courts, quickly broke down. Yet because of the settlement, new suits alleging the village is a theocracy have never been allowed to go forward, leaving the issue unresolved.
About the “Jewish Law and the Constitution” Series
The familiar talmudic statement dina de-malkhuta dina (the law of the kingdom is the law) doesn’t even begin to cover the complex relationship between Judaism and state law. This series will draw out some signal characteristics of that relationship as it has evolved and unfolded in the orbit of American constitutional law. Each talk highlights one arena in which the legal system has been drawn into conversation with Jewish life and vice versa. Case by case, they tell stories of religion and politics, democracy and minorities, theory and practice: law entangled with law.
Continuing Law Education Credit
This program has been approved for 1.0 Substantive CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit should make a payment via the online registration link in the amount of $40.00 ($20.00 public interest/non-profit attorneys). In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, passwords provided throughout the program must be noted in your evaluation form.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
About the image above: Catalogue, Belcher Mosaic Glass Company (New York, 1886), Winterthur Museum Library, via publicdomainreview.org.
Featuring
Nomi Stolzenberg
University of Southern California
Nomi Stolzenberg holds the Nathan and Lily Shapell Chair at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law. Her research spans a range of interdisciplinary interests, including law and religion, law and liberalism, law and feminism, law and psychoanalysis, and law and literature. She is currently working on the subject of religious liberty theory and “faith-based discrimination.”
Stolzenberg received her JD from Harvard University. She has taught at Tel Aviv University, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Columbia Law School. At the USC Gould School, she helped establish the USC Center for Law, History, and Culture, which she currently codirects.
Cosponsors
This event is cosponsored with the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law. We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Klatt Family and the Harry Stern Family Foundation.
