ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS In response to the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Dobbs v. Jackson overruling Roe v. Wade, the precedent that had recognized a constitutional right to abortion, American Muslims have voiced a diverse array of opinions, some viewing the recent decision as an infringement of their religious freedoms as Muslims. … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup
SCHOLARSHIP ROUNDUP On Islamic Law: In "Maintaining the Plurality and Sacred Value of Islamic Law through the Existence of the Sharia Banking Law" (Al-Ahkam 31, no. 1 (April 2022)), Waldi Nopriansyah (Sekolah Tinggi Ekonomi dan Bisnis Syariah, Indonesia) and others discuss Indonesia's Sharia Banking Law, finding it to be capacious enough "as a legal product … Continue reading Weekend Scholarship Roundup
ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS Scholars of Islamic law have continued to debate the question of whether the use of cryptocurrencies is permissible under Islamic law. For more content and context on Islamic debates over the permissibility of using cryptocurrencies, consult the contributions by our Research Editor Raha Rafii here and here. Some Muslim rights … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup
SCHOLARSHIP ROUNDUP On Islamic Law: In "Paying Moms to Breastfeed in Medieval Europe" (JSTOR Daily, June 6, 2022), Livia Gershon writes that "medieval Islamic law viewed nursing and raising young children as a job for which a divorced or separated woman should be paid a salary." In "Islamic Finance" (Lexology, June 16, 2022), Munib Hussain … Continue reading Weekend Scholarship Roundup
Congratulations to Shayan Karbassi (JD ‘22), the recipient of the Program in Islamic Law Writing Prize for his paper "Pursuit of Supranational Authority: Constitutionalism and the Islamic Republic of Iran,” written under the supervision of Professor Vicki C. Jackson. We award this prize annually to the Harvard Law School student who has written the best paper in the … Continue reading PIL Writing Prize Winner: Shayan Karbassi
ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS Borno State Governor (Nigeria), Professor Babagana Zulum, urged the Nigerian "government to establish an institutional framework that would guide the conduct of fatwa." As Saudi Arabia is debating amending its blood money law, some sources have reported that the Shoura Council considering the amendments declined to discuss inserting the following … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup
By Raha Rafii Courts in India continue to circumscribe Indian Muslims’ religious rights in tandem with the Hindutva (Hindu nationalist) policies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who came to power in 2014, and his ruling political party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In March, the High Court of the state of Karnataka issued a ruling on … Continue reading Snapshot: Karnataka High Court Ruling on Banning Ḥijāb
SCHOLARSHIP ROUNDUP On Islamic Law: In "Shari'a On Intellectual Property In Arab Countries - Economic Analysis" (Mondaq, May 30, 2022), Sonakshi Pandey (Khurana & Khurana) explains that, under Islamic law, "[t]he right to trademark protection has been interpreted by analogy as a private property right based on prior usage, which is governed by Islamic property laws." … Continue reading Weekend Scholarship Roundup
ISLAMIC LAW IN THE NEWS In reportedly the first case in which a New Zealand court was asked to consider Islamic law, a Wellington court ordered "the payment of a dower set out in a marriage contract solemnized under sharia law in the UAE." A Muslim slaughterhouse in D.C., which started its operations after delays … Continue reading Islamic Law in the News Roundup
By Raha Rafii Several long-established bodies representing Muslims in India have responded to the Karnataka State Court’s upholding of the ḥijāb ban in government schools in March. Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind,[1] the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM),[2] and the All India Personal Law Board (AIMPLB)[3] in Delhi emphasized the negative impact on both religious freedom and Muslim … Continue reading Indian Muslim Organizations’ Responses to Karnataka Ḥijāb Ban in Schools
