Contemporary Fiqh

Contemporary Fiqh is an advanced course designed to equip students with a structured methodology for engaging with contemporary legal questions through the principles and intellectual framework of the Hanafi school.

The course is not simply about producing answers to new questions. It focuses on understanding how contemporary cases should be analysed: identifying the relevant juristic principles, examining classical precedent, assessing the underlying legal causes, and applying those principles carefully to circumstances that may not have existed in the classical period.

The course therefore begins with a methodological foundation before moving into selected contemporary case studies.

Students will examine issues including:

• Zakat and modern financial arrangements
• Pension schemes
• Trusts, investment funds and Zakat
• Insurance and its permissibility
• Moon sighting and lunar calendars
• Halal mechanical slaughter
• Modern food production
• Alcohol and food ingredients
• Gelatine and transformation (Istihalah)
• Online marriages
• Contemporary issues relating to divorce

Throughout the course, particular attention will be given to distinguishing between the classical legal ruling, the contemporary factual reality, and the method by which one is applied to the other.