Shulchan Aruch, Even HaEzer Siman 163

Siman 163

Presented here for study, not as a practical ruling. The Shulchan Aruch rules by Sephardi custom, the Rema's glosses by Ashkenazi custom, and the Kitzur follows Ashkenazi custom. For a practical question, ask your rabbi.

א הַמְיַבֵּם אֶת יְבִמְתּוֹ, זוֹכֶה בִּנִכְסֵי הַמֵּת וְעוֹמֵד בִּמְקוֹמוֹ לִטֹּל חֶלְקוֹ בִּנִכְסֵי אֲבִיהֶם. וַאֲפִלּוּ גֵּרְשָׁהּ אַחַר כָּךְ מִיָּד (נ"י פֶּרֶק הַחוֹלֵץ), וּבִלְבַד שֶׁהָיְתָה רְאוּיָה לוֹ לַיָּבָם. וְדַוְקָא בַּמֻּחְזָק, כְּגוֹן שֶׁמֵּת אֲבִיהֶם וְאַחַר כָּךְ מֵת אָחִיו קֹדֶם שֶׁחָלְקוּ; אֲבָל לֹא בָּרָאוּי, כְּגוֹן אִם מֵת אָחִיו וְאַחַר כָּךְ אֲבִיהֶם. וַאֲפִלּוּ בַּמֻּחְזָק, אֵינוֹ נוֹטֵל אֶלָּא בְּגוּף הַנְּכָסִים, אֲבָל אִם הִשְׁבִּיחוּ הַנְּכָסִים, אֵינוֹ נוֹטֵל חֵלֶק אָחִיו בְּאוֹתוֹ שֶׁבַח, אֲפִלּוּ אִם שִׁבְּחוֹ אַחַר יִבּוּם, קֹדֶם חֲלֻקָּה. הַגָּה: יֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים דְּכֹל שֶׁמִּקְּרֵי רָאוּי גַּבֵּי בְּכוֹר, מִקְּרֵי גַּם כֵּן רָאוּי אֵצֶל יָבָם (רִיבָ"שׁ ס' ת"ע). וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים דְּיָבָם נוֹטֵל בְּמִלְוֶה וּבִשְׁאָר רָאוּי, רַק שֶׁאֵינוֹ נוֹטֵל בָּרָאוּי שֶׁל אָבִיו, אִם מֵת אַחַר אָחִיו (מהרי"ו סִי' מ"א); וְהַסְּבָרָא רִאשׁוֹנָה נִרְאֶה עִקָּר:

1 A man who takes his [late] brother's wife in levirate marriage acquires the property of the dead man, and stands in his stead to take his share in the property of their father. Rema: Even if he divorced her immediately afterward (Nimukei Yosef, Chapter haCholetz), as long as the levirate marriage was [halachically] appropriate. This applies only to property already in the dead brother's possession, e.g. if their father died first, and then the brother died before the father's estate was divided. But the rule does not apply to property destined for the dead brother, e.g. if the brother died [first] and then their father died. Even with respect to property already in the dead brother's possession, the living brother takes only the capital value (at the time of the father's death), but if the property subsequently increased in value, the living brother does not take the dead brother's share in the increase, even that increase which took place after the levirate marriage and before division of the estate. Rema: Some say that anything which is considered to be destined property with regards to [the double inheritance of] a firstborn is also considered as destined property by levirate marriage (Rivash, chapter 470). And some say that a brother who took a levirate wife collects loans and other properties directly destined for his late brother, but not property destined for his (i.e. their) father, if the father had died after the brother (Mahariv chapter 41), but the first opinion seems primary.

ב הַחוֹלֵץ לִיבִמְתּוֹ, הֲרֵי הוּא כְּאֶחָד מִשְּׁאָר הָאַחִים לַנַּחֲלָה. וְאִם הָאָב קַיָּם, הוּא יוֹרֵשׁ הַכֹּל; וְאִם מֵת, יַחֲלֹקוּ הָאַחִים בֵּינֵיהֶם. הַגָּה: וַאֲפִלּוּ רָצָה לְיַבֵּם, אֶלָּא שֶׁהִיא לֹא רָצְתָה, וְחָלַץ לָהּ, אֵין לוֹ בַּנְּכָסִים רַק כִּשְׁאָר יוֹרֵשׁ (ת"ה סִימָן ר"כ). וַאֲפִלּוּ קֹדֶם שֶׁחָלַץ, אִם תָּפַס הָאָב וְאָמַר: קִים לִי כְּמַאן דְּאָמַר מִצְוַת חֲלִיצָה קֹדֶם וְעַל כָּרְחָן שֶׁל אַחִים יִצְטָרְכוּ לַחֲלֹץ, אֵין מוֹצִיאִין הַנְּכָסִים מִיָּדוֹ (מַהֲרִי"ק שֹׁרֶשׁ ע"ג וצ"א). וְכָל זֶה מִדִּינָא, אֲבָל כְּבָר יֵשׁ תַּקָּנָה שֶׁהַחוֹלֵץ יֵשׁ לוֹ חֲצִי הַנְּכָסִים, וְעַיֵּן לְקַמָּן סִי' קס"ה:

2 Someone who does chalitzah to his yavamah is considered just like one of the remaining brothers in regards to the inheritance. If their father is still alive, he inherits everything; if their father is dead, the brothers split the [inheritance] between them. Rema: And even if he wanted to do yibum but she didn't want to do yibum thus he did chalitzah to her, he still only has rights to the property like any other inheritor. And even if before he did the chalitzah, the father seized the property and said, "consider me like the one who did the mitzvah of chalitzah first" and the brothers then joined {יצטרפו} together to force the chalitzah, do not remove the property from his hand (Mahari''k 73). And all of this is the technical law, however, there is a subsequent ruling that the one who does chalitzah gets half of the property. See later on in siman 165.

ג יִבֵּם הַיָּבָם בְּתוֹךְ שְׁלשָׁה חֳדָשִׁים, וְיָלְדָה לְסוֹף תִּשְׁעָה חֳדָשִׁים, סָפֵק אִם הוּא בֶּן תִּשְׁעָה חֳדָשִׁים לָרִאשׁוֹן, אוֹ בֶּן שִׁבְעָה לַשֵּׁנִי, וְתוֹבֵעַ הַסָפֵק נִכְסֵי הַמֵּת, שֶׁאוֹמֵר שֶׁהוּא בְּנוֹ; וְהַיָּבָם אוֹמֵר: אֲנִי יוֹרְשׁוֹ כִּי אַתָּה בְּנִי, יְחַלְּקוּ הַיָּבָם וְהַסָפֵק בֵּינֵיהֶם; אֲפִלּוּ אִם אֶחָד מֵהֶם מֻחְזָק, אֵין חוֹשְׁשִׁין לְחֶזְקָתוֹ. וְאִם מֵת הַסָפֵק קֹדֶם חֲלֻקָּה, יְחַלְּקוּ הַזָּקֵן וְהַיָּבָם. וְיֵשׁ מִי שֶׁאוֹמֵר, שֶׁאִם אֵין אֲבִי הַמֵּת קַיָּם, יִטֹּל הַיָּבָם הַכֹּל:

3 [In the event that] a yavam does yibum within 30 days [of his brother's death] and a baby is then born at the end of nine months later, it is uncertain whether the child is a full-term [=nine months in utero] baby of the first husband[=the deceased brother] or whether he is a premature [=seven months in utero] baby of the second husband[=the yavam]. If this child of uncertain paternity claims [to inherit] the assets of the first husband since he can says that he's his son but the yavam responds "I should inherit from him since you're my son," the yavam and the son will split the assets; even if one of them is muchzak, the chazakah is not considered. If the son dies before the division of assets, then they should be split between the grandfather[=father of the yavam and the deceased] and the yavam. There are those that say that if the grandfather is still alive then the yavam takes everything.

ד סָפֵק וּבְנֵי יָבָם שֶׁבָּאוּ לַחֲלֹק בְּנִכְסֵי הַמֵּת, הוּא אוֹמֵר: אֲנִי בֶּן הַמֵּת וְאֶטֹּל הַכֹּל, וְהֵם אוֹמְרִים: אָחִינוּ אַתָּה וְאֵין לְךָ חֵלֶק אֶלָּא כְּאֶחָד מִמֶּנּוּ, הַחֵלֶק שֶׁהֵם מוֹדִים לוֹ יִטֹּל, וְהַשְּׁאָר יַחֲלֹקוּ וְיִטֹּל הוּא חֲצִי וְהֵם חֲצִי. וְיֵשׁ מִי שֶׁאוֹמֵר, שֶׁכָּל הַנְּכָסִים חוֹלְקִים בְּשָׁוֶה, הוּא מֶחֱצָה וְהֵם מֶחֱצָה:

4 [someone] questionable and sons of the brother-in-law [Yavam] whom came to share the properties of the deceased, he says: I'm the son of the deceased and would take everything, and they say: You are our brother and you have a part only as one of us, the share they admit is his - he'll take, and the rest they'll share and he'll take half and they ['ll take] half. and there's one saying, all properties they share equally, he [gets] a half and they [get] a half.

ה סָפֵק וּבְנֵי יָבָם שֶׁבָּאוּ לַחֲלֹק בְּנִכְסֵי יָבָם, לְאַחַר שֶׁחָלַק הַיָּבָם בְּנִכְסֵי הַמֵּת, וְאוֹמֵר הַסָפֵק: אִם אֲחִיכֶם אֲנִי תְּנוּ לִי חֵלֶק וּמַה שֶּׁלָּקַחְתִּי מִנִּכְסֵי הַמֵּת עִם אֲבִיכֶם אֲחַזִיר וְנַחֲ הַכֹּל, וְאִם אֵינִי אֲחִיכֶם תַּחְזְרוּ לִי נִכְסֵי אָבִי שֶׁלָּקַח אֲבִיכֶם, אֵין חוֹשְׁשִׁין לִדְבָרָיו:

5 A doubtful [son] and the children of the yavam (levir) who come to divide the yavam's property after the yavam has divided the dead brother's property. And the doubtful son says: If I am your brother, give my my portion and that which I took from the dead brother's property with your father I will return it all, and if I am not your brother, give me back my father's property that your father took, they don't listen at all to his words.

ו סָפֵק וְהַיָּבָם שֶׁבָּאוּ לַחֲלֹק בִּנִכְסֵי הַזָּקֵן, וְאוֹמֵר הַסָפֵק: אֲנִי בֶּן הַמֵּת וְיֵשׁ לִי לִטֹּל הַחֲצִי, אֵין שׁוֹמְעִין לוֹ:

6 A doubtful [son] and a yavam who come to divide the property of the elderly one, and the doubtful one says, "I am the son of the dead man and I get to take half," we do not listen to him.

ז סָפֵק וּבְנֵי יָבָם שֶׁבָּאוּ לַחֲלֹק בִּנִכְסֵי הַזָּקֵן, וְאוֹמֵר הַסָפֵק: אֲנִי בֶּן הַמֵּת וְיֵשׁ לִי לִטֹּל הַחֲצִי, וְהֵם אוֹמְרִים: אַתָּה אָחִינוּ וְאֵין לְךָ אֶלָּא הַשְּׁלִישׁ, הַחֲצִי שֶׁהוּא מוֹדֶה לָהֶם יִטְּלוּ, וְהַשְּׁלִישׁ שֶׁהֵם מוֹדִים לוֹ יִטֹּל, וְהַשְּׁתוּת הַנִּשְׁאַר יַחֲלֹקוּ, יִטֹּל הוּא חֶצְיוֹ וְהֵם חֶצְיוֹ:

7 A doubtful [son] and children of the yavam who came to divide the property of the eldest one, and the doubtful one says, "I am the son of the dead man and I get to take half," but they say, "You are our brother and you only get one third," then the half which he agrees [should go] to them, they take, and the third that they agree [should go] to him, he takes, and the sixth which remains, they divide. He takes half [of the sixth = 1/12] and they take half [of the sixth = 1/12].

ח זָקֵן וְיָבָם בְּנִכְסֵי סָפֵק אוֹ סָפֵק וְזָקֵן בִּנִכְסֵי יָבָם, חוֹלְקִים:

8 The eldest one and the yavam dividing the property of a doubtful [son] or a doubtful [son] and an eldest [dividing] the property of the yavam, they divide it [equally].

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