OCTOBER 17 • 2019 | 31
continued on page 34
continued on page 34
Even though these were
diff
erent faiths, the concept
is still the same.
— ROQUIA DRAPER
2019 legal directory
(beit din) regarding the
issuance of a get, or Jewish
divorce decree, so that his
ex-wife would be free to
remarry under Jewish law. By
the terms of their ketubah,
the husband had agreed to
appear before the beit din to
settle any disputes.
The New York court
ruled that a ketubah met all
the requirements of a civil
contract and that enforcing
it did not violate the sepa-
ration of church and state.
The court ordered then the
ex-husband to submit to the
beit din, as required by the
ketubah.
The New York judges
noted that citizens are free to
enter into valid contracts —
including religious marriage
contracts — and have them
enforced in court.
Representing the wife
in the Michigan case was
attorney Roquia
Draper, a
Muslim who
practices family
law with the
firm Warner
Norcross + Judd
in Southfield. In
her legal research
for the case, she came across
several appellate decisions
in other states that involved
ketuvot. She saw a similarity
with her client’
s position
where the wife relied on a
Roquia
Draper
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