CM Questions

Chazan Seymour Schwartzman (emeritus) was falling on hard times (retirement was difficult for him) and so he approached Mr. Goldberg to borrow $1500 from him. When he didn't pay it back at the agreed-upon time, Mr. Goldberg sued him in the Yorkville Beis Din. "Do you have any witnesses?" asked Rabbi Toledano, to which Mr. Goldberg presented 5 witnesses. As the judges interviewed each witness, they were surprised by the variety of responses:

1. Witness 1 saw a loan take place on Sunday for $100
2. Witness 2 saw a loan take place on Monday for $200
3. Witness 3 saw a loan take place on Tuesday for $300
4. Witness 4 saw a loan take place on Wednesday for $400
5. Witness 5 saw a loan take place on Thursday for $500

According to the S.A., what is the amount that the Beis Din will force Chazan Schwartzman (Emeritus) to pay Mr. Goldberg today?

1. $200
2. $700
3. $967
4. $1500

Chazan Seymour Schwartzman (emeritus) was falling on hard times (retirement was difficult for him) and so he approached Mr. Goldberg to borrow $1500 from him. When he didn't pay it back at the agreed-upon time, Mr. Goldberg sued him in the Yorkville Beis Din. "Do you have any witnesses?" asked Rabbi Toledano, to which Mr. Goldberg presented 5 witnesses. As the judges interviewed each witness, they were surprised by the variety of responses:

1. Witness 1 saw a loan take place on Sunday at 8:00pm for $100
2. Witness 2 saw a loan take place on Sunday at 8:00pm for $200
3. Witness 3 saw a loan take place on Sunday at 8:00pm for $300
4. Witness 4 saw a loan take place on Sunday at 8:00pm for $400
5. Witness 5 saw a loan take place on Sunday at 8:00pm for $500

According to the S.A., what is the amount that the Beis Din will force Chazan Schwartzman (Emeritus) to pay Mr. Goldberg today?

1. $200
2. $700
3. $967
4. $1500

Jo Jo Shehabar loaned $2000 to his mechutan Isaac Dwek, but when it came time to pay back, Isaac denied ever having received a loan. Jo Jo summoned Isaac to the Great Neck Beis Din and brought with him 2 witnesses. The first witness stated that he saw Jo Jo lend $2000 to Mr. Dwek on Sunday, and the second witness stated that he saw Jo Jo lend $2000 to Mr. Dwek on Monday. How will the Beis Din rule in this case?

1. Since the two witnesses contradict each other regarding the date of the loan, they are not admissible and no money will be awarded to Jo Jo.
2. Since the two witnesses do agree on the amount loaned, the Beis Din will award Jo Jo $2000.
3. Since the witnesses might be used to claim two loans totalling $4000, but the claim is only for $2000, the Beis Din will assume there is some truth to the matter and award $1000.

Jo Jo Shehabar loaned $2000 to his mechutan Isaac Dwek, but when it came time to pay back, Isaac denied ever having received a loan. Jo Jo summoned Isaac to the Great Neck Beis Din and brought with him 2 witnesses. The first witness stated that he saw Jo Jo lend $2000 to Mr. Dwek on Sunday, and the second witness stated that on Monday he witnessed Mr. Dwek admit to Jo Jo that he owes him $2000. How will the Beis Din rule in this case?

1. Since the two witnesses do not concur with each other regarding the details of the loan, they are not admissible and no money will be awarded to Jo Jo.
2. Since the two witnesses do agree on the amount loaned, the Beis Din will award Jo Jo $2000.
3. Since each witness is testifying to different aspects of the loan (the actual loan and an admission of a loan after the fact), the Beis Din will assume there is some truth to the matter and award $1000.

After Shacharis at the Great Neck Sefardi Synagogue, Isaac Dwek asked his mechutan Jo Jo Shehabar to loan him $2000, and Jo Jo immediately obliged and gave him $2000 cash for 30 days. Unbeknownst to Jo Jo and Isaac, Zack Mizrachi was in the front of the synagogue and witnessed the entire proceedings, and Evan Elyahou was in the back row and also witnessed the loan – and neither witness knew that the other witness had seen everything. Thirty days later, Isaac claimed that he never took out a loan. After Shacharis, Jo Jo asked if anyone noticed this loan, and Zack and Evan said they did. Can these two men join together as kosher witnesses to this loan in a Beis Din?

"Can you please return the $2000 I loaned you?" asked Jo Jo Shehebar to his mechutan Isaac Dwek, as he showed him the IOU note for a "$2000 loan". "But I already paid you back in full! Why didn't you rip up the IOU note!" claimed Isaac. Jo Jo took Isaac to the Great Neck Beis Din, and Isaac brought two witnesses with him. Evan Elyahou testified that he saw Isaac pay back $1000 on Monday, and Zack Mizrachi testified that he saw Isaac pay back $1000 on Tuesday. Given this testimony, how much money will the Beis Din order Isaac to pay back to Jo Jo?

1. $0.00 (nothing)
2. $1000
3. $2000

Jo Jo Shehebar couldn't get his mechutan Isaac Dwek to repay the $2000 he loaned him, so he took him to the Great Neck Beis Din. Before the hearing, Jo Jo informed the Beis Din that he had two witnesses to the loan, but due to their busy schedules, the first witness could only show up on Monday afternoon, and the second witness could only show up on Tuesday morning. Will the Beis Din accept the testimony from these two witnesses, as the strength of "Shnei Eidem", if they testify separately on two different days?

Jo Jo Shehebar tried to get his mechutan Isaac Dwek to repay the $2000 he loaned him, but Isaac denied ever having taken a loan. Jo Jo took him to the Great Neck Beis Din, and to prove the validity of his loan, he brought two documents, each signed by a different witness: The first attested to a loan of $1000 and the second attested to a loan of $2000. "Why do you have two loan documents for one loan?" asked Dayan Ben Chaim. Jo Jo explained that he was about to loan him $1000, but just before handing over the money, Isaac asked for another $1000, so they wrote another document for a $2000 loan. As Isaac completely denies any loan, how much will the Beis Din award Jo Jo in this case?

1. Nothing
2. $1000
3. Between $1000 and $2000
4. $2000
5. $3000

Jo Jo Shehebar tried to get his mechutan Isaac Dwek to repay the $2000 he loaned him, but Isaac denied ever having taken a loan. Jo Jo took him to the Great Neck Beis Din, and during the hearing Evan Elyahou and Zack Mizrachi showed up and told the judges that they witnessed the loan. Given this testimony, the judges ruled in favor of Jo Jo, and Isaac paid him the $2000 he claimed. Some time later Josh Ebrani presented himself to the Beis Din and admited that he was a good friend of Jo Jo, and didn't want him to lose out, so he hired these two witnesses to give false testimony to the Beis Din to force Isaac to pay the $2000 to his friend. Will the Beis Din now compel Josh Ebrani to pay Isaac Dwek $2000, since he caused him this loss of money?

Why is a witness who is related to a litigant forbidden to testify in a Beis Din, or forbidden to be a witness at a wedding if he is related to the bride or groom?

1. We are concerned that he might not testify truthfully, and instead show favoritism to his relative.
2. The Torah affords “Testimonial Privilege” for all relatives, allowing them to refuse to testify to maintain trust and confidentiality.
3. The Torah is concerned about emotional impairment due to emotional ties between the witness and his relative.
4. There is no rational reason. Rather, this is a decree from the Torah.

Jo Jo Shehebar summoned his mechutan, Isaac Dwek, to the Great Neck Beis Din over an unpaid loan. To support his claim, he brought in Josh Ebrani as a witness to the transaction. “But the two of them are best friends!” Isaac protested to the Beis Din. Can Isaac disqualify Josh’s testimony on the grounds that, as Jo Jo’s close friend, his testimony might be biased?

To prove his case in the Great Neck Beis Din, Isaac Dwek wanted to call his 100+ year-old great-grandfather to testify on his behalf. Is the Beis Din permitted to accept this testimony? Please match the posek (Mechaber and Rema) with the ruling (permitted or not permitted).

Yitzchak Tzvi asked his friend Avidan to be one of the witnesses at his wedding. He had some ideas about a second witness, which he discussed with the Rosh Yeshiva to ensure that they would be kosher witnesses together. Please select all the men below who would be kosher as a second witness:

1. The man is related to Avidan, the first witness.
2. The man is related to Yitzchak Tzvi, the groom.
3. The man is related to Chana, the bride.
4. The man is related to the Rosh Yeshiva, who is the Mesader Kedushin.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' wife and the wife of the potential second witness were sisters. Is this second witness valid, even though he is only related to the first witness through marriage?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' wife and the wife of the potential second witness were first cousins. Is this second witness valid, even though he is only related to the first witness through marriage?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' son had married the daughter of the second potential witness. Is this second witness valid, even though he is only related to the first witness through marriage of their children?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' was a step brother with this other witness (Rabbi Michael's father had married the mother of this second potential witness). Is this second witness valid, even though he is only related to the first witness through the marriage of the parents?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.

According to the A.H., can Yitzchak Tzvi be a witness together with his wife's grandfather Eliezer?

1. No.
2. Yes.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' sister had married the second potential witness, but this sister had died shortly before Yitzchak Tzvi entered the Yeshiva. Is this second witness valid, as he is related to the first witness through his deceased wife?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.

Yitzchak Tzvi asked Rabbi Michaels to be the first witness at his wedding. When he discussed a possibility for a second witness with the Rosh Yeshiva, the Rosh Yeshiva told him that Rabbi Michaels' sister had married the second potential witness, but after several years of marriage and 4 children together, he had given her a get. Is this second witness valid, as he is related to the first witness through his ex-wife?

1. Yes.
2. Yes, but this is not preferred.
3. No.