Subjects 2008
Principles of Islamic Law (formerly Fundamentals of Islamic Law) 730795
- Credited Courses: Graduate Diploma in Asian Law 726; Graduate Diploma in International Law 323; Graduate Diploma in International Law 323; Graduate Diploma in Islamic Legal Studies 892; Graduate Diploma in Legal Studies L08; Graduate Diploma in Transnational Law 333; Graduate Diploma in Transnational Law 333; Master of Law and Development 635; Master of Law and Development 635; Master of Laws (LLM) 502; Master of Laws (LLM) 502; Master of Laws by Coursework (LLM) 502; Master of Legal Systems 890; Master of Legal Systems 890; Master of Public and International Law 511; Master of Public and International Law 511
Objectives
A candidate who has successfully completed the subject should:
- Demonstrate a firm grasp of the history and development of Islam and Islamic law (sya’riah)
- Understand the basic sources of Islamic jurisprudence and its classical origins
- Be able to apply the basic methods of Islamic legal reasoning to selected case studies
- Be able to identify some of the key controversies in Islamic jurisprudence
- Be familiar with the basic principles governing Islamic law-givers.
Syllabus
Principal topics will be selected from a range, including the following:
- The origins of Islam The principal sources of Islamic law: Qur’an, Sunna and Hadith
- The development of Islamic legal traditions
- Formal reasoning: Qiyas (analogy); Ijtihad; taqlid; Istihsan (juristic preference); Istishab; maslahah (public interest)
- Fiqh – Islamic jurisprudence
- Classes of action
- Sunni and Shiite Islam compared
- The Sunni madhab: Syaf’i’i, Maliki, Hanafi, Hanbali
- Regional variations
- Scholarship in Islam, uztad, ulama, mufti etc.
- Islamic education: the role of madrasah
- Fatawa
- Islamic judicial models: Qadi, Hakim
- Tajdid: Modern reforms
- Current debates, case studies.
