1,682. Divorcing Because of Bad Reputation

Hilchos Ishus 24:15

Divorcing a woman because of bad reputation is as follows: There were witnesses that she did something indecent, which suggests that she committed adultery, but there is no conclusive evidence. For example, let’s say that a woman was home alone and people saw a perfume merchant leaving. They immediately entered her home and saw her getting out of bed and putting on her undergarments, or they found drool on the canopy of the bed. Similarly, if people saw them coming from a dark place together, or one helping the other out of a trench, or they saw the man kiss the woman’s cloak, or people saw them hugging or kissing, or they entered a room and locked the door behind them, or any other kind of suspicious activity. In all such cases, if the husband wants to divorce her, she does not receive the value of her ketubah. In cases such as this, a warning is not required.

Hilchos Ishus 24:16

If a woman violates das Moshe or das Yehudis, or if she acquires a bad reputation, her husband is not obligated to divorce her; he has the option to remain married. However, even in cases where he doesn’t divorce her, she is not entitled to be paid the value of her kesubah. This is because the kesubah was instituted by the Sages to keep husbands from frivolously divorcing their wives. The Sages instituted it to protect women who act properly, not to benefit those who behave scandalously. Quite the opposite, the husbands of such women should not be impeded from divorcing them.