BENEFIT 305: Seeking Judgement Through Man-Made Laws

Question: Is it permissible to go to the courts of the kuffaar to get your rights against another Muslim if that is the only means of obtaining your rights? Sheikh Al-Uthaimeen, in his Tafseer of Surah Al-Ma'idah, states: "Seeking judgment from man-made laws which are in opposition to this Deen is not permissible as well as acting on those judgments and implementing those judgments. Allah the Most High said, "And judge between them with what Allah has sent down, and do not follow their desires. And beware, so they do not lure you away from some of what Allah has revealed to you. If they turn away, then know that it is Allah’s Will to punish them for some of their sins, and that many people are indeed rebellious. Is it the judgment of pre-Islamic ignorance they seek? Who could be a better judge than Allah for people of sure faith? Also evidence for this is the statement of Allah, "O believers! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. Should you disagree on anything, then refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if you truly believe in Allah and the Last Day. This is the best and fairest resolution. Have you not seen those who claim they believe in what has been revealed to you and what was revealed before you? They seek the judgment of false judges, which they were commanded to reject. And shaytan only desires to lead them farther away. When it is said to them, “Come to Allah’s revelations and to the Messenger,” you see the hypocrites turn away from you stubbornly." Allah also said, "But no! By your Lord, they will never be true believers until they accept you as the judge in their disputes, and find no resistance within themselves against your decision and submit wholeheartedly." As well as other Ayaat which show the obligation of seeking judgment from what Allah has revealed and prohibit seeking judgment from that which opposes the Revelation. However, if somebody seeks judgment from man-made laws due to an absolute necessity to relieve himself of the oppression from another person or to return his rights to him, it is permissible in this circumstance with the following conditions: First, there is no other way for him to retrieve his rights except through this means. Second, he has to hate and despise the ruling with man-made laws. (He cannot be pleased with the situation. He is doing what he has to do with displeasure for people ruling with other than what Allah revealed) The third and final condition is that he cannot take more than his rights even if they judge in his favour with more than he has a right to. I hope that brings clarity to the issue. I have been struggling with this issue for over a year now. Alhamdulillah, I found what I was seeking." [end quote] Similarly, the Permanent Committee of Ulema in Saudi Arabia issued the following Fatwa: «لا يجوز للمسلم التحاكم إلى المحاكم الوضعية إلا عند الضرورة إذا لم توجد محاكم شرعية، وإذا قضي له بغير حق له فلا يحل له أخذه» "It is not permissible for a Muslim to seek judgment from courts guided by man-made laws except in case of necessity if there is no Shariah guided court for him to attain his rights in. If he is granted judgment beyond his rights, it is not permissible for him to take extra." [Volume 23 page 502 of their fatawa] Here, we can see that in cases of necessity, the person is allowed to seek only his rights. This means that if you did a job for a person, and they owe you for the job, let's say $5,000, and they are refusing to pay you. You go to the courts to get the $5,000. If the courts judge in your favour for $20,000, it is only permissible for you to retrieve the $5,000. Anything else you take is haram. @muhammadjamessutton