Is It Permissible for a Lawyer to Include Interest Claims in Lawsuits, as Mandated by Law?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
Is it permissible for a lawyer in a non-Muslim country to include interest claims in lawsuits, as mandated by law? If not, can this be delegated to a secretary or another party? Alternatively, can the interest claim be omitted but later added by someone else with the lawyer’s signature on the lawsuit? If none of these are permissible, is donating a portion of the salary as expiation an option?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question and understanding of the religion.
It would be impermissible to include interest claims in lawsuits yourself. As you mentioned, you can delegate this task to a secretary or omit it so that someone else can add it later.
Jabir (Allah be pleased with him) reports that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) cursed the one who eats interest, feeds interest, writes down interest, and witnesses interest. He added that they are equal in sin. [Muslim]
The commentators of hadith explain that “writing interest” in this hadith refers to someone who documents the actual transaction, as this is a direct form of assistance in sin. In contrast, an individual who records the interest transaction after it has already occurred is not included within the scope of this hadith.
[Munawi, Fayd al-Qadir]
I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. In sha Allah, you will receive guidance and direction.
Related
- Working as an Accountant When Interest Transactions
- Documenting Usurious Transactions as an Accountant
- Can One Work at an Insolvency Law Firm Where One Records Claims and Demands of Interest To Be Sent Out to Creditors?
- How to Avoid Riba (Usury): A Reader
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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
