Attorney Nechama Tzivinis Seeks Beis Din Intervention on Soaring Sheitel Prices

Attorney Nechama Tzivinis has filed a lawsuit with the Chabad Beis Din Rabbonei in Israel, demanding that the rabbinical court regulate the price of sheitels – wigs worn by married women for religious reasons. The case was prompted by a recent sale of a sheitel for 48,000 shekels (about $16,000), which Tzivinis says places a heavy financial burden on many families.

The complaint argues that sheitels are a basic necessity under halachic law and should be subject to price controls limiting profit margins to one‑sixth above production costs. Similar claims are being prepared for other batei din serving Litvish and Chassidic communities, seeking an explicit psak forbidding price‑fixing and mandating the availability of an affordable, basic‑quality sheitel for large families and low‑income households. No response has yet been given by wig manufacturers.

"The prices are hurting many families," Tzivinis said, emphasizing the need for communal and halachic oversight to prevent price gouging.