sharīʿa courts

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones A number of recent academic studies dealing with the marriage and divorce practices of British Muslims have picked up on a number of themes that are hinted at by the speakers quoted throughout this blog: unregistered marriages, Islamic divorces, and shari‘ah councils, to name a few. However, despite their rigour, … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 7 :: Conclusions and further observations

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Introduction Bana Gora is Chief Executive Officer of the Muslim Women’s Council, an organization established in 2009 to represent the views of Muslim women across the UK. Her expertise is in matters of social policy and engagement with marginalized communities in particular, and at present she is involved in the … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 6 :: Bana Gora

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Introduction Ajmal Masroor is one of Britain’s most high-profile imāms. He leads prayers in four London mosques, and has been a high-profile spokesperson and broadcaster for British Muslims. He has been a well-known proponent of reformist Islamic thought, including on issues of family values and laws, and has headed the … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 5 :: Ajmal Masroor

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Introduction Sometimes described as “the UK’s first female shari‘ah judge,” Amra Bone sits on the panel of the Shari‘ah Council of Birmingham Central Mosque, one of the UK’s largest and best-known shari‘ah councils, which handles a large body of Muslim divorce litigation in particular. She has also worked as a … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 4 :: Amra Bone

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Introduction Musharraf Husain is an ‘alim and imām based in Nottingham, and one of the leading Muslim community representatives of the Midlands. Trained at Al-Azhar in Cairo, he is a scholar of the Qur’ān and Islamic sciences, and is a public community spokesperson and educator; he is also the chief … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 3 :: Musharraf Husain

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Introduction Aina Khan is a London-based solicitor with expertise in international and Islamic family law, who runs her own legal practice in London. With three decades of professional experience in Muslim family and matrimonial law, she has worked both in matters of British civil law and private international law. She … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 2 :: Aina Khan

By Shaheen Ali and Justin Jones Recent years have seen heated debate about the ability of modern, purportedly secular Western nations to accommodate the practice of Islamic norms of marriage and divorce by their Muslim citizens. To what extent should Muslims be able to live under the jurisdiction of laws derived from their religious traditions in … Continue reading Muslim marriage and divorce practices in contemporary Britain :: Part 1 :: Introduction