Going the Extra Mile in Money Matters
The Gemara states, “Lo charvah Yerushalayim elah al shehemidu dineihem al din Torah” (Yerushalayim was destroyed only because they acted in accordance with the letter of the Torah and did not go beyond it). The concept of going lifnim meshuras hadin (beyond the minimum required of us by Torah law) is rooted in Torah. According to some early authorities it is to be counted among the 613 mitzvos.
Acting lifnim meshuras hadin in money matters entails paying out in a situation where the defendant is not obligated to according to the strict interpretation of the law. This is illustrated in the Gemara concerning Raba Bar Bar Chanan, one of the Amara’im (sages of the Talmud) who paid workers for carrying his load even though they broke his barrel in the process, for the sake of “l’maan telech b’derech tovim” (so that you may go in the way of the good and upright).
Lifnim meshuras hadin would also be returning a lost object even when the finder is not obligated by halachah to return it. In certain cases* halachah grants homeowners the freedom to use their property at their discretion, even if the usage might indirectly damage a neighbor’s property; but a person who acts lifnim meshuras hadin would refrain from doing so.
Some poskim say that a Beis Din (Jewish court of law) may compel a litigant to pay another, even if the judges ruled lifnim meshuras hadin—and not strictly according to Torah law. Others state that force—physical punishment—may not be used in such a case, but other methods of coercion may be employed. There is even more reason for the Beis Din to rule lifnim meshuras hadin if the plaintiff is poor and the defendant is an adam chashuv (an important person) or a community entity.