Negative commandment · Lo Ta’aseh #277 of 613
Not to have mercy on a poor person in judgment
שלא לרחם על עני בדין
The verse · Shemot 23:3
וְדָל לֹא תֶהְדַּר בְּרִיבוֹ
“nor shalt thou favour a poor man in his cause.”
The Rambam’s words
Not to have mercy on a poor person in judgment, as [Exodus 23:3] states: "And do not favor a poor man in his cause."
שלא לרחם על עני בדין, שנאמר "וְדָל לֹא תֶהְדַּר בְּרִיבוֹ" (שמות כג, ג).
Why · Sefer HaChinuch #79
To not have mercy upon a poor person in his case
“And the root of this commandment is well-known, as the intellect testifies to equitability in judgment — since it is a fit and proper thing.”
Who & when
“And [it] is practiced in every place and at all times by males.”
Where in the Mishneh Torah
Hilchot The Sanhedrin and the Penalties within Their Jurisdiction הלכות סנהדרין והעונשין המסורין להם