This is all Ben Gurion's fault. In order to shut the ultra-Orthodox up about waiting for the Messiah to have Israel be an actual state, Ben Gurion gave them control of family law/marriage. They still have it, and nobody's dared to take it away from them. He thought they'd just fade out of existence, so the point would be moot. They didn't; instead they had children.

@2 To judge by this film, it's a terrible system. Even if the rabbinical court rules in the wife's favor, the husband gets the final say. That's what impedes the process in this case.