The Judiciary is responsible for delivering the verdict for the purpose of enforcing it. It settles disputes between people, prevents whatever may harm the rights of the community and also settles the disputes between people and any person who is part of the ruling structure, whether they are rulers or civil servants, the Khaleefah or any other person. The origin of the judicial system and its validity is the Book and the Sunnah. As for the Book, Allah (swt) says;

“And judge between them by that which Allah has revealed.” [TMQ Al-Mai’dah: 49]

And He (swt) also says;

“And if they were invited to Allah and His Messenger to judge between them...” [TMQ An-Nur: 48]

As for the Sunnah, the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was himself in charge of the Judiciary and He judged between people. Al- Bukhari narrated about A’isha, wife of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh), that she said;

“Utba Ibnu Abi Waqqas told his brother Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas that the child of Zuma’a belongs to him, so keep Him with you. In the year of the conquest, Sa’d took Him and said, ‘The child is my nephew, and He (his brother) has entrusted Him to me.’ Abd ibn Zuma’a stopped and said, ‘He is my brother, the son born to my father, and He was born on his bed.’ So they both rushed to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) and Sa’d said ‘O Messenger of Allah! He is my nephew and my brother has entrusted Him to me’ and ‘Abd bin Zuma’a said, ‘He is my brother and a son born to my father on his bed.’ The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, ‘The child is for the bed and for the fornicator is stoning.’”

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) used to appoint the judges. He appointed ‘Ali as judge over Yemen and He gave Him instructions about how to judge by saying;

“If two disputing men come to you do not give a judgement for one of them until you have heard what the other has had to say.” He (pbuh) also appointed Mu’az as a judge over Al-Janad. This indicates the legacy of the judiciary. As for the method of judicature carried out by the Messenger (pbuh), it can be deduced from the Hadith of ‘A’iesha that Sa’d and Abd Ibnu Zuma’a disputed over the son of Zuma’a. Each one claimed that He was his. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) informed them of the divine rule that the son of Zuma’a was the brother of Abd Ibnu Zuma’a, and that the child belongs to the one on whose bed it is born. Therefore, his (pbuh) judgement was information about the divine rule and then He enforced it upon them, and thus ‘Abd Ibnu Zuma’a took the child. This is the evidence that gives the definition of the Judiciary and this definition serves as a description of the reality. However, since it is a divine reality, and since the divine definition is in fact a divine rule, it therefore requires evidence from which it is to be deduced, and this Hadith serves as an evidence for the definition of the judiciary.

Some people defined the functions of the judiciary as being the ‘settling of the disputes between people’. However this definition is deficient on the one hand, and on the other hand it is not a description of the reality of the judiciary as reflected in the Messenger of Allah’s actions and sayings. This definition is merely a manifestation of what may or may not arise from the judiciary. For the judge may render a judgement on the case without necessarily settling the dispute between the parties. Therefore, the comprehensive and exclusive definition would be the one mentioned at the beginning of this chapter i.e. the one deduced from the Ahadith.

Moreover, this definition includes the judgement between people, and this is mentioned in the Hadith of ‘A’eisha. It also includes the Hisba (public order) which means: ‘Conveying the divine rule for the purpose of enforcing it regarding that which causes harm to the rights of the community.’ This is highlighted in the Hadith of the heap of food. It has been reported in Sahih Muslim on the authority of Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) passed by a heap of food. As He put his hand inside it his fingers got wet, so He said to the vendor:

“‘What is this?’ He said; ‘It was dampened by the rain O Messenger of Allah.’ He (pbuh) said; ‘Why don’t you put it on the top so that people can see it? He who cheats does not belong to me.’” It also includes the Mazaalim (unjust acts), because they are part of the judiciary and not part of the ruling, since they are complaints against the ruler. The Mazaalim would be defined as: ‘Delivering of the divine rule by way of compulsion with regards to the dispute that may arise between the citizens and the Khaleefah or any of his Wulah or employees, or any conflict between the Muslims about the interpretation of any of the Shar’a texts used in order to judge by them and to rule according to them.’ The Mazaalim (unjust acts) were mentioned in the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) regarding the fixing of prices where He said;

“And verily I hope that I will meet Allah Azza wa Jall without having anyone claiming against me a Mazlama (complaint) I inflicted on him, be it of blood or funds.” [Narrated by Ahmad on the authority of Anas] This indicates that complaints against the ruler, or the Waali or the civil servants should be submitted to the judge of Mazaalim, and the Judge of Mazaalim would deliver the divine rule by way of enforcement. Therefore the definition would include the three areas of judiciary reflected in the Ahadith and actions of the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). These are: settling disputes between people, preventing whatever may harm the rights of the community and the settling of disputes between the citizens and the rulers, or between the citizens and the civil servants within their duties.