Collecting interest in a civil lawsuit
Hello Rabbi.
Unfortunately, I have had to go to court after a tenant in a property I rent out does not pay and ignores requests to pay the debt. To the best of my knowledge, in Israel, according to the law, and according to the accepted practice in civil courts, the court decides, in addition to the amount of the claim, also linkage differences and interest from the date of the charge or from the date of the judgment.
Is it permissible to claim these amounts?
Is it permissible to collect them?
Is there a difference between demanding payment of the full amount that a court ruled in the judgment (which includes interest and linkage), and collecting the debt in a debt collection agency, where the debt collection agency adds interest according to its own method?
(Does the rabbi’s position regarding going to the courts in Israel in financial disputes have an impact on his answer?)
As mentioned, unfortunately this is a practical question (and even more unfortunately – I have hardly found a direct (and clear) reference to this question in an internet search, even though religious people apparently go to court just as much, and therefore I am forced to bother the rabbi and ask. Perhaps this is just my limitation, and I apologize accordingly), and I would like to hear the rabbi’s opinion, if he can instruct how he thinks such a matter should be handled.
Thank you very much in advance.
If you have the option of going to a rabbinical court (will the tenant comply?), it is worth going there. If not, go to the court. After that, you can waive the interest and linkage if you wish. I am not sure that this should be done. This is not a cut interest, and in my opinion, the Dina Demalkhuta can impose a financial penalty on an offender.
Can arrears interest be considered as compensation for damages against the return that could have been received using the money that was delayed during the time it was delayed?
I think so. Unlike linkage, interest is a type of punishment or compensation.
In the corrupt economic system that goes against the Torah (and I haven't heard any wise rabbis in idle chatter but fools in the plain Torah going against it), the Bank of Israel prints money. And this causes the money you have to lose value over time (inflation). In addition to raising prices. And this means that the money it will pay you after a while is worth less than what it pays you immediately. And that includes, among other things, interest.
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