As Torah-observant Jews, we try to live up to the Halachos of lashon hara, which guide us in what is appropriate speech, especially in regards to derogatory information. However, there are numerous situations where Halacha defines what we may or may not say, even if no derogatory information is exchanged. This can especially be relevant in business.
In a
previous article, we explored the Halachos of lashon hara as relating to business situations. This article will
explore speech where lashon hara is
not an issue. Let’s consider the following case study:
Friends and Competitors
Chaim,
Pinny, and Aharon are three accountants who are friends and are starting to
develop practices. The three of them have a sense for marketing their practices,
and each of them is looking to develop new clients, especially within the frum community. Once February rolls
around, all three advertise heavily in the frum
magazines and papers.
Kalman
is a potential client who notices their advertisements. Kalman is a really nice
guy. He also comes from a family of 10 siblings, whom he often helps with his
advice and suggestions on financial matters. Kalman has offered to help his
siblings get their tax returns done by organizing their financial statements
and submitting them to a CPA to prepare their returns. All his siblings have
taken Kalman up on this, and he then starts making calls looking for the
accountant who will do a good job at the best price.
He
responds to the ads of Chaim, Pinny and Aharon, explaining to each of them that
he has a big job and asks for their price for services. The three accountants
ask Kalman for some basic financial statements that relate to the job. Aharon
tells Kalman that the tax returns have issues that are outside his area of
expertise. However, Chaim and Pinny both want the job. Chaim tells Kalman that
he will do the job for $4,000. Pinny then asks Kalman what estimates he has
received for the job. When Kalman tells Pinny about the estimate he got from
Chaim for $4,000, Pinny says he will do it for $3,500. Kalman then goes back to
Chaim. Chaim says he will also do the
job for $3,500, and will throw in some tax planning services during the year as
well. Kalman then commits to give Chaim the job.
Pinny
still wishes to solicit Kalman’s business, but upon hearing that he already
committed to Chaim, he is unsure if this is right and proper to do, and goes to
seek Rabbinical guidance for the Halachic parameters pertaining to competing
for the same client.
This
situation is one example of a common question about how Halacha views fair
competition. More specifically, the question here is what is appropriate when
trying so solicit clients when a competing practitioner wants the same clients.
One
point to make is that the Halachos of lashon
hara always apply – meaning there is never grounds for one practitioner to
say anything negative about a competitor. Although lashon hara is permitted for the sake of toeles – a positive purpose for the lashon hara[1] – that dispensation would not apply to competitors. It
is inevitable that a competitor who says something negative about another competitor
is a biased party and does not have the proper intention that would allow the lashon hara to be shared in certain
other cases.
The Halachic Analysis
The
main question here is whether a competitor can sell his own services through
offering a better price, extra services, or something else additional to the
potential client for the sake of getting clients that would go elsewhere. There
are a few variables that affect the Halacha:
1) Has
the client made a commitment to the practitioner?
Since in this case Kalman already made a
commitment to Chaim, Pinny is not allowed to try to get Kalman as a client.
This comes under the Halachic concept called “Ani Mehapech B’Charara.”[2] The idea behind
this Halacha is that once the client and practitioner (Kalman and Chaim) have
finalized the terms of the deal between them, then another practitioner (such
as Pinny) can not try to take the deal away. This applies even when the parties
have not formally signed a contract, as long as they have come to an agreement
on the terms of with the deal.
2) Has
this client been a regular with the practitioner in past years?
Even had Kalman not yet made a commitment
to Chaim, if Kalman was a satisfied client of Chaim’s from previous years and
had not been looking for other accountants instead, then Pinny would not be
allowed to lure Kalman away to become his client. In a certain sense, the Halacha
views Kalman as “belonging” to Chaim. Therefore, if Chaim had already been
doing Kalman’s tax returns in past years, then Pinny may not try to take Kalman
away.
However, in our case, since Kalman was actively
comparing accountants and he initially called Pinny as well, Pinny would be
permitted to try to solicit Kalman had he not yet come to an agreement with
Chaim.
Black-and-White or
Gray?
Some situations lend themselves to a gray
area, in which it may not be clear if the client has already made a commitment or
if he was a loyal client of one of them. In case the parties are not able to
resolve the issue themselves, they should seek Rabbinical guidance. There may
be other Halachic considerations that are relevant as well.
Additional
Applications
It should be emphasized that the Halachic
principles explained in this article regarding competitors vying for the same
client have many other applications as well.
For instance, when employers are searching
for qualified employees, they may not lure an employee away from a company in
which he is currently working, but may give offers to an employee who is
looking for work, until he accepts an offer that he is satisfied with.
Similarly, when prospective home buyers
are interested in purchasing the same property that was put up for sale, they
may each make offers and attempt to negotiate a deal only up until the point that
the seller comes to an agreement with one of them. Once he accepts an offer
that he is satisfied with, other prospective buyers are not allowed to try to
undo that deal by offering a higher bid.
We daven that Hashem should help us with
integrity in our speech, not just regarding lashon
hara but in all areas of honesty. We also daven that Hashem should bring us
the proper parnassa for our family
through means that are in keeping with the Torah values of business ethics.
Rabbi
Rosenfeld administers cases for the Baltimore Bais Din. He may be reached at
RYR@baltimorebaisdin.org.
