Moot Beit Din Shabbaton

Weber School students recently participated in the prestigious Maimonides Moot Court Competition held in Sleepy Hollow, NY. The competition, powered by the Hadar Institute and supported by the Maimonides Fund, challenges students to explore contemporary ethical questions using Jewish legal wisdom. In the competition, teams serve as a beit din, a Jewish court of law, applying halakhic precedent and Jewish ethical teachings to contemporary issues. This year's case focused on the application of Jewish laws and ethical teachings on privacy rights in the digital age, specifically regarding the limits on data collection by social media platforms. The teams develop arguments from a curated sourcebook of traditional and modern Jewish texts to address the questions presented in a detailed case.

Our students excelled in the competition, with Einav Malka, Adrianna Castiglione, Tahel Shantzer, and Shira Formey securing first place in the Cardozo division, and Elliott Furie, Adam Ress, Micah Kopelman, Gavrielle Diamant, and Daniel Katz achieving third place in the Brandeis division. Reflecting on the experience, Einav Malka shared, "Moot Beit Din is such an amazing experience that allows us to meet Jewish students from across the country and to bond with them during Shabbat. The competition is a great opportunity to delve into Torah and Jewish Law and present our argument like a true Beit Din." The competition offered an enriching experience, allowing students to engage in meaningful debate, enhance their analytical skills, and connect with Jewish teens worldwide, making the Maimonides Moot Court Competition a truly transformative experience for our students.

Participating students included Mollie Engler, Tahel Shantzer, Rory Lipson, Gavrielle Diamant, Einav Malka, Brooke Maman, Grace Mailman, Jillian Smith, Adrianna Castiglione, Shira Formey, Nuriel Shimoni-Stoil, Haiden Jacoboff, Daniel Katz, Adam Ress, Elliott Furie, Micah Kopelman, Liyel Margolias, and Ari Gordon. The team was guided by Jewish Studies teacher Rabbi Moshe Sokol and Bernadette May-Beaver, Director of Israel and Global Education.