Organization for the Resolution of Agunot (ORA)

What Organization for the Resolution of Agunot (ORA) does

ORA (Organization for the Resolution of Agunot) is a US-based nonprofit, founded in 2015 and headquartered at 551 West 181st Street in New York City, that works to resolve cases of get-refusal in the Orthodox Jewish community. The organization assists agunot — Jewish women whose husbands refuse to issue a get (religious divorce) — through a combination of direct case advocacy, rabbinic coordination with batei din, social and communal pressure campaigns against recalcitrant spouses, and legal/mental-health professional referrals. All services are delivered free of charge to individuals.

ORA operates a portfolio of programs: the One Step Forward helpline (1-844-673-5463), which has handled over 8,000 calls since 2015 and serves more than 1,000 individuals annually; case advocacy services that resolved a documented milestone 100th case in recent years and continue at a pace of roughly 425 agunot helped per year; The Get Guide, a PDF educational companion for navigating Jewish divorce; the Halachic Prenup initiative to prevent agunah situations before marriage; a Campus Fellowship Program with 142+ alumni across 40+ universities; an international Resource Database spanning the US plus Israel, Argentina, Australia, Canada, England, and South Africa; and an annual Agunah Awareness Shabbat observed by 100+ partner communities.

The organization operates under the halachic guidance of Rabbi Hershel Schachter of RIETS/Yeshiva University and maintains formal partnerships with batei din, synagogues, and Israeli women's advocacy organizations. Its revenue model is exclusively donation- and grant-funded, and the team consists of 9 full-time staff. There are no disclosed funding rounds, ownership stakes, or audited financials. ORA is a member of the SRE Network (2022) and is not a technology company — its "platform" is its human network of rabbis, attorneys, mental-health professionals, and trained student ambassadors.

Name

Organization for the Resolution of Agunot (ORA)

Legal name

Organization for the Resolution of Agunot

Website

https://getora.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ORA is a New York–based nonprofit founded in 2015 that helps Jewish women (agunot) obtain religious divorces through free case advocacy, a helpline, rabbinic coordination, halachic prenup services, and a Campus Fellowship program, serving 1,000+ individuals annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: ORA operates as a nonprofit organization funded primarily through charitable donations and grant funding. The website has a dedicated donation page and the organization mentions grant funding opportunities.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

ORA is a nonprofit advocacy organization that resolves cases of Jewish get-refusal (agunah) by providing free case advocacy, a helpline (One Step Forward), educational resources (The Get Guide), and Halachic Prenuptial Agreement services to prevent get-refusal before marriage. It also runs a Campus Fellowship training program and an annual Agunah Awareness Shabbat to mobilize communities against recalcitrant spouses.

Product overview

ORA offers a suite of advocacy services and educational resources to help women trapped in get-refusal situations. The core offerings include One Step Forward (a helpline/resource line), The Get Guide (educational companion), and Halachic Prenup services (prevention). Additional programs include the Campus Fellowship for training future leaders, Case Advocacy for individual cases, and a Resource Database for geographic-specific support. The organization operates under rabbinic guidance and employs social, communal, legal, and financial pressure strategies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• One Step Forward: The Jewish Divorce Resource Line - a special project of ORA providing support, guidance, and resources to anyone going through the Jewish divorce process.

Products and services

• One Step Forward (Jewish Divorce Resource Line) A free helpline providing support, guidance, referrals, and resources to Jewish individuals navigating the divorce process; has assisted over 1,600 individuals since 2015 and fielded 8,000+ calls for help.
• The Get Guide A comprehensive PDF companion guide for individuals and families navigating Jewish divorce, covering substantive halachic issues, beit din processes, civil vs. halachic differences, and practical guidance for obtaining a get.
• Halachic Prenuptial Agreement Service A service that helps engaged couples sign a halachic prenuptial agreement establishing financial penalties for a spouse who withholds a get, thereby preventing future get-refusal situations before marriage.
• Campus Fellowship Program A year-long fellowship training college students across 40+ universities in get-refusal, the halachic prenup, domestic violence awareness, and leadership skills; alumni serve as ORA ambassadors on campus and in their communities. Has produced 142 alumni who have facilitated 195 halachic prenups.
• Case Advocacy Service Individual casework for agunot that works with rabbis, attorneys, mediators, and mental health professionals to formulate action plans and apply social, communal, legal, and financial pressure against recalcitrant spouses to obtain an unconditional get.
• Resource Database An online database of divorce-related resources organized by geography, including U.S. national and state-level resources and international resources covering Israel, Argentina, Australia, Canada, England, and South Africa.
• Agunah Awareness Shabbat An annual Shabbat dedicated to raising awareness about agunot, held ahead of International Agunah Day on Ta'anit Esther, with 100+ partnering communities worldwide participating in coordinated awareness activities.

Quantifiable outcome

• 425 agunot helped per year
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Rabbi Hershel Schachter / RIETScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerORA operates under the halachic guidance of Rabbi Hershel Schachter, Rosh Kollel of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) of Yeshiva University, providing religious legitimacy and oversight.
• 100+ Partnering Synagogues WorldwidecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOver 100 partnering communities including synagogues in the US (New Jersey, Maryland, Missouri, Tennessee, New York) and Israel (Jerusalem, Efrat, Ma'ale Adumim, Beit Shemesh) participate in Agunah Awareness Shabbat and refer individuals to ORA.
• Batei Din (Jewish Courts)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerORA works closely with batei din including the Beth Din of America and rabbonim throughout the world on individual agunah cases, issuing seruv orders and coordinating get proceedings.
• Israeli Organizations (Bat Melech, Center for Women's Justice, Mavoi Satum, Yad L'Isha)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerORA's resource database links to Israeli organizations providing legal aid, shelters, hotlines, and advocacy for women including Bat Melech hotline 1-800-292-333, Yad L'Isha legal aid center, Mavoi Satum, and the Center for Women's Justice.
• Attorneys and Mental Health ProfessionalscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerORA works with a network of attorneys, mediators, and mental health professionals to provide comprehensive support for individuals navigating the Jewish divorce process, including pro bono legal representation.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Yad L'Isha: Israel-based legal aid center for Jewish women facing get-refusal. Directly comparable as a peer organization addressing agunah issues through legal advocacy, listed in ORA's own resource database as a referral partner.
• Shalom Task Force: US-based Jewish organization addressing domestic violence and abuse in the Orthodox community. Comparable as a peer providing social services, education, and advocacy within the Jewish community.
• Center for Women's Justice (Israel): Israeli NGO advancing women's rights in religious courts, including agunah cases. Directly comparable in mission and advocacy approach, listed as a partner referral by ORA.
• Jewish Family Service (JFS network): Network of social service agencies serving Jewish families across North America with counseling, case management, and advocacy. Comparable as a Jewish-community-focused social services provider serving similar client populations.
• Mavoi Satum: Israeli organization advocating for agunot through legislative and legal channels. Comparable as a direct peer addressing the same agunah crisis in the Jewish community, also referenced in ORA's partner network.
• Bat Melech: Israeli hotline and resource center for women in the religious community facing domestic abuse and get-refusal. Directly comparable mission overlap; explicitly listed as a partner referral in ORA's resource database.

Others

• Beth Din of America: Rabbinical court serving the American Orthodox community on matters including Jewish divorce. Comparable as a strategic counterpart in the get-resolution process; ORA works closely with this body but is not a direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Orthodox Union (OU): Large Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization providing rabbinic endorsement and community programming. Comparable as a broad incumbent whose rabbinic authority and community reach overlap with ORA's operational territory.
• Hadassah: Large Jewish women's organization with advocacy, education, and social services programs. Comparable as a broader incumbent focused on Jewish women and family welfare, though operating at significantly greater scale and scope.
• Agudath Israel of America: Large umbrella Orthodox Jewish advocacy organization with broader communal agenda. Comparable as a broader incumbent in Orthodox Jewish communal infrastructure that influences policy and rabbinic coordination on family law matters.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ORAagunot
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/ORAgunot
• Facebookfacebook.com/get.ora
• Instagraminstagram.com/oraagunot
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/organization-for-the-resolution-of-agunot-ora-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Organization for the Resolution of Agunot (ORA)