An opinion piece argues that Israel's rabbinical courts function as extra-territorial entities, wielding sweeping authority over citizens' personal lives while operating with minimal transparency or oversight. Drawing on a recent interview with social activist Naomi Avraham, the author describes a broader ultra-Orthodox power structure that controls vast public budgets and key institutions without accountability, a pattern reflected in the rabbinical court system.

Although funded by the state and empowered by law, the rabbinical courts allegedly set their own internal rules, resist intervention by the High Court of Justice, and conduct appointments behind closed doors. The system includes 111 male judges and no women, with senior leadership positions also exclusively male. Recent administrative failures, including the shutdown of court computer systems over an unpaid debt, are cited as evidence of dysfunction.

The author contends that the consequences are especially severe for women, as the courts determine matters such as divorce, custody, alimony, and property. A newly passed law expanding the courts' jurisdiction into certain civil disputes is portrayed as deepening the problem by granting additional powers without requiring transparency or reform.

Calling the situation a structural crisis rather than a minor flaw, the writer urges systemic change, including public oversight, transparent appointments, and the inclusion of women at all levels of the religious legal system, including appointing a woman as director-general.