The Book of Judicial Decisions

كتاب الأقضية

Chapter 6: The reward of the judge if he strives to reach a decision, whether he gets it right or wrong

This hadith has been transmitted on the authority of Usama b. al-Had al-Laithi.

Chapter 7: It is disliked for a judge to pass a judgement when he is angry

Abd al-Rahman b. Abu Bakra reported

My father dictated (and I wrote for him) to Ubaidullah b. Abu Bakra while he was the judge of Sijistan: Do not judge between two persons when you are angry, for I have heard Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying: None of you should judge between two persons when he is angry.

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of 'Abd al-Rahman b. Abu Bakra through another chain of transmitters.

Chapter 8: Rejection of wrong rulings and of newly-invented matters

'A'isha reported Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) as saying

He who innovates things in our affairs for which there is no valid (reason) (commits sin) and these are to be rejected.

Sa'd b. Ibrahim reported

I asked Qasim b. Muhammad about a person who had three dwelling houses and he willed away the third part of every one of these houses; he (Qasim b. Muhammad) said: All of them could be combined in one house; and then said: 'A'isha informed me that Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: He who did any act for which there is no sanction from our behalf, that is to be rejected.

Chapter 9: The best of witnesses

Zaid b. Khalid al-Juhani reported Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) as saying

Should I not tell you of the best witnesses? He is the one who produces his evidence before he is asked for it.

Chapter 10: Differences between mujtahids

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) as saying

While two women had been going along witn their two sons, a wolf came and made away with the child of one of them. One of them said to her companion: It is with your child that it (the wolf) has run away The other one said: It has run away with your child. They brought the matter to (Hadrat) Dawud (David) for decision and he made a decision in favour of the elder one. They then went to Sulaiman b. Dawud (may there be peace upon both of them) and told them (the story). He said: Bring me a knife so that I may cut him (the child) (into two parts) for you. The younger one said: No, it can't be, may Allah have mercy upon you, he (the child) belongs to her (the elder). So he gave a decision in favour of the younger one. abu Huraira said: If ever I heard of the word as-sikin at all, it was that day. We called it by no other name but al-Mudya.

This hadith has been narrated on the authority of Abu az-Zinad with the same chain of transmitters.

Chapter 11: It is recommended for a judge to reconcile between disputants

Hammim b. Munabbih said

Abu Huraira reported (so many) ahadith of Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), and one of them is this: A person bought from another person a piece of land, and the person who had, bought that land found in it an earthen ware which contained gold. The person who had bought the land said (to the seller of the land): Take your gold from me, for I bought only the land from you and not the gold. The man who had sold the land said: I sold the land to you and whatever was in it. They referred the matter to a person. One who was made as a judge said to them: Have you any issue? One of them said: I have a boy, and the other said: I have a young daughter He (the judge) said: Marry this young boy with the girl, and spend something on yourselves and also give (some) charity out of it.