Rebecca Shwartz, Law Office and Mediation

Divorce, inheritance, parental responsibility – the most emotionally charged moments in family life are often the most legally and halachically complex. Rebeka Schwartz Law Firm & Mediation is a boutique firm specializing in family law, personal status, inheritance, and Rabbinical Courts. The firm is known for handling complex legal and halachic matters and for developing innovative arguments adopted by civil and Rabbinical Courts, contributing to the development of family and personal status law in Israel. Its unique strength lies in combining civil and religious law with a deep understanding of the social and community realities surrounding family disputes.

Bridging Two Legal Systems

The firm’s in-depth knowledge of both legal systems enables it to identify the key points of contention from the earliest stages of proceedings, formulate strategies tailored not only to the applicable law but also to the client’s life circumstances, and skillfully navigate proceedings before both Family Courts and Rabbinical Courts. Alongside its legal and halachic expertise, the firm is committed to providing close, personal guidance throughout every stage of the process, recognizing that family law proceedings are among the most sensitive and complex experiences in a person’s life. The firm provides clients with high availability, ongoing updates, and a sense of security even during the most challenging moments, based on the belief that close cooperation between attorney and client is key to achieving the right outcome.

Areas of Practice

The firm’s expertise in both legal systems enables it to identify key issues early, develop strategies tailored to each client’s circumstances, and effectively navigate proceedings before Family and Rabbinical Courts. Alongside its legal and halachic expertise, the firm provides close, personal guidance, high availability, and ongoing support throughout the process, recognizing the sensitive nature of family law proceedings and the importance of close attorney-client cooperation in achieving the best outcome.

About Adv. Rebeka Schwartz

Adv. Rebeka Schwartz grew up and practices within the Haredi community, bringing a deep understanding of the social, communal, and halachic complexities surrounding family disputes. She holds an LL.B. with honors from Ono Academic College and a Master’s degree in Public Policy from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and completed her legal internship at the State Attorney’s Office, Criminal Department. She is recognized as a prominent attorney in family and personal status law, handling complex and landmark proceedings at the intersection of civil law, personal status law, and halacha. Her approach combines innovative legal and halachic thinking, a commitment to negotiated solutions where appropriate, and determined advocacy when necessary, always considering each client’s unique circumstances and the impact of proceedings on the family unit. Adv. Schwartz also lectures regularly on family law, Rabbinical Courts, Jewish law, and professional ethics.

Public and Professional Activity

Alongside her legal practice, Adv. Schwartz is active in the public and professional spheres, promoting dialogue on family law, strengthening the status of the Rabbinical Courts, and advancing professional ethics. She regularly appears in the media, lectures at conferences, and participates in professional panels, journals, and podcasts. She serves on the Israel Bar Association’s Rabbinical Courts Committee and chairs the Committee for the Advancement of Women’s Status in the Jerusalem District. Previously, she served as Deputy Chair of the Jerusalem District Bar Association, Chair of its Rabbinical Courts Committee, and a member of its Ethics Committee. She has also held board positions in public and community organizations. Adv. Schwartz founded “Min HaMetzar”, a pioneering organization providing legal assistance and personal support to victims and survivors of sexual offenses within the Haredi community, helping advance public discourse on the issue.

Among the firm’s notable cases

• A child born following a uterus transplant and sperm donation raised an unprecedented question before the Rabbinical Court: who are the child’s halachic and civil parents? The case addressed fundamental issues of parenthood and personal status at the intersection of medicine, civil law, and halacha.

• Concealed medical information prior to marriage raised fundamental questions regarding informed consent, the duty of disclosure, and entitlement to a ketubah, in a landmark proceeding that led to a significant ruling.

• A spouse’s mental illness raised complex halachic questions regarding the validity of a get. After a prolonged legal and halachic battle, the case resulted in an order compelling the husband to grant a divorce, his imprisonment, and the woman’s release from her status as an agunah.

• A parent’s change in lifestyle raised complex questions involving religious identity, education, and maintaining relationships with the children. The case involved developing legal solutions at the intersection of freedom of religion and choice, the best interests of the child, and personal status law.

• Representation in landmark property proceedings addressing the scope of the specific-sharing doctrine and the balance between property rights and the family unit, while integrating civil law, personal status law, and principles of Jewish law.

• Representation in complex international proceedings, involving questions of jurisdiction, international child abduction, personal status, and cross-border determinations.

• In large families, as is common in the Haredi community, a single inheritance proceeding can involve dozens of heirs at once – representation in complex inheritance proceedings, including matters concerning the tension between Israel’s Inheritance Law and halachic inheritance principles, and the development of solutions that respect both legal systems while preserving family unity.

• Representation in a landmark proceeding in which the Rabbinical Court accepted the firm’s position that social benefits accumulated through the wife’s employment should not be subject to equitable distribution where she had solely carried the burden of supporting the family for years while the husband unjustifiably refrained from working, based on the halachic principle of “ma’aseh yadeha shelah” – that a wife’s earnings belong to her.

• Representation in a landmark parental alienation case – one of the most painful and difficult phenomena to prove in legal proceedings, in which a child is gradually alienated from a parent until their relationship is almost completely severed. The firm was required to draw a clear distinction between justified estrangement and deliberate alienation, and developed a legal strategy that succeeded in restoring a relationship that had appeared to be lost.

• Representation in a precedent-setting appeal concerning the jurisdiction of Rabbinical and Juvenile Courts, resulting in a ruling that protective proceedings under the Youth Law may proceed despite earlier proceedings before a Rabbinical Court involving the same family.

These proceedings reflect the firm’s commitment to developing legal solutions where the law has yet to provide clear answers, while integrating Israeli law, personal status law, and evolving social realities. The firm views every case not only in terms of its immediate legal outcome, but also its impact on the family’s next chapter, seeking solutions that enable clients to move forward with stability, certainty, and dignity.