Question: In the Name of Allah and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). Oh Shaikh, what is the ruling on working in the judiciary or as a lawyer, knowing that the land does not practice the legislated rules issued from the Book and the Sunnah. They only use the man-made laws that are issued from the west?
Shaikh al-Albani: “I do not believe practicing to be a lawyer is permissible in this present time due to the what the brother questioner mentioned, unless we suppose a very difficult affair. In my opinion, it is not possible to hold fast to it, except if two, respectable characteristics are fulfilled:
The first characteristic: that the lawyer study the legislated knowledge that is extracted from the Book and the Sunnah from one angle as he studies the law of the land from another angle. This characteristic alone is sufficient in that if we imagined that we will find it, it is almost impossible. This is because these lawyers who study the law of the land take years of their life to do that. So when will they spend time to study the Islamic legislation in light of the Book and the Sunnah as it is obligatory upon every Scholar who wants to adopt the legislated ruling?
The second thing: it is important also like the first. That we imagine this lawyer to have the utmost integrity. When someone comes to him requesting him to defend his right. So he should study this right in the light of both types of knowledge, which he has with him: the knowledge of the Book and the Sunnah and the knowledge of the man-made law which he studied. So if he finds a possible means from the man-made laws to reach his right which the claimant claims and that does not oppose the knowledge of the legislation, then he can defend him. However, I believe if the lawyer is firm upon this for a year or two, then soon he will incline to these people and will leave the boundary of defending a right. Whether it is by a client for him or against him and he will go for the material benefit which is a benefit for him. This is very difficult. So like this we say, it is not allowed to lawyer in boundaries of man-made laws which are observed in this time”.
[Fatawa al-Juddah no. 20 Side B]
Translated by
Faisal Ibn Abdul Qaadir Ibn Hassan
Abu Sulaymaan
