[Avodah] Maharat

[Akiva Miller via Avodah]

R' Noam Stadlan asked:

: The other point which really hasn't been adequately unravelled is whether
: semicha is synonymous with heter hora'ah? something different? can someone
: have heter hora'ah and not semicha?

I agree that an answer to this is crucial to the conversation.

Many times, people have told me that the author of the Mishne Berura
did not get semicha until very late in life when he needed the
ordination for some government paperwork. And yet, he was quite
involved with hora'ah, and we rely on his paskening even today. How
can this be? Dare we imagine that he did such things unauthorizedly?
Certainly he must have had/received some sort of Heter Hora'ah. If so,
then when and how did he get it - and without getting semicha at the
same time?

Akiva Miller