The Sharia suggests the husband-and-wife different means of separation should their marriage break down irretrievably. The husband possesses the sole right of divorce, however, should the husband not be willing to offer a divorce, the wife may offer a compensation, often the mahr, in return for a divorce, and, should the husband accept, they may separate thereafter, which is commonly known as the khulʿ process. The former process is generally initiated by the husband, whereas the latter is generally initiated by the wife.

Should the husband reject even the khulʿ process, then the recourse in an Islamic country with a court system was generally the judiciary. The judiciary had the right to impose a ruling on the parties who themselves were not able to resolve. This is because the point of the judiciary is to resolve disputes and to re-situate disputing parties into the fabric of society. As such, in a divorce case between a couple, the judge, after careful examination, would issue an annulment of the marriage (faskh al-nikāḥ) since it remained the only way to resolve the dispute between the two parties.

In non-Muslim societies, such judiciaries do not exist, and a civil court does not have jurisdiction over religious marriages, and so a disputing couple may not have recourse to a judiciary that may impose a separation by their own authority. Communities are therefore allowed to appoint a tribunal of three qualified, upright, and influential individuals who may act collectively as a quasi-judge and may eventually issue a faskh al-nikāḥ after thorough examination of the case.^[1]

Hence, if your friend has exhausted the avenues of seeking divorce and khulʿ, then she may seek out a Sharia council (acting in the capacity of the tribunal mentioned above) who may examine her case and issue a final ruling.

Mf. Farhan ul Haq
Assistant Mufti, Darul Iftaa Chicago

Checked and Approved:

Mf. Abrar Mirza
Head Mufti, Darul Iftaa Chicago