Religious law is and should be voluntary on the part of all parties and should have the same basic effect as a civil court or the like. I've never heard of a case brought before a bais din that had the same weight as a court ruling. Maybe if the same evidence was presented and the court ruled the same way but not directly. There have always been community based courts ranging from religious to tribal to counselors. The difference in the case of Sharia is that there is no barrier between civil cases and others. A case between a husband and wife may be followed by the killing of a criminal or adulteress. There's also a certain 'force' involved that does not exist in other religious courts mentioned.
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