Conversion to any branch of Judaism requires an extended period of study under rabinnic supervision. Sometimes this study involves taking classes, sometimes it is one-on-one with a rabbi. Some conversion classes do have up-front tuition. Some are free, it depends on the local circumstances. In any case, at the end of the period of study, the potential convert appears before a beit din (a rabbinical court composed of 3 judges) to finalize their conversion. There have been stories of "quickie" conversions involving little or no study and large fees paid to the beit din. Most Jews, Orthodox or non-Orthodox, are extraordinarily suspicious of those conversions. How are they different from paying bribes to the court, in which case, the conversion is a sham and so is the court that accepted the b