Muin al-Hukkam fima yataraddad bayn al-khasmayn min al-ahkam
- Author died
- 844 AH
- Editions
- Dar Al-Fikr
Muin al-Hukkam fima yataraddad bayn al-khasmayn min al-ahkam (The Helper of Judges Regarding Rulings Arising Between Litigants) is a treatise on Islamic judicial procedure and governance by the Hanafi jurist and judge of Jerusalem, Ala al-Din Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Khalil al-Tarabulsi (d. 844 AH / 1440 CE) .
Purpose and Scope
Al-Tarabulsi authored the work to articulate the fundamental rules of judicial science, clarify the arguments and evidence through which lawsuits are resolved, and expound the principles of Sharia-compliant governance (al-siyasa al-shariyya), stating that neither judicial proofs nor governance can dispense with the other .
Structure and Contents
The author arranged the book into three primary parts (aqsam), all focusing on the science of adjudication (ilm al-qada) :
- Part One: Preliminaries of Adjudication (Muqaddimat hadha al-ilm): Explores foundational concepts across several chapters, including the definition, legal ruling, and wisdom of adjudication; the virtues and seeking of judicial office; the scope and ranks of judicial jurisdiction; the phrasing that institutes appointments; and the six pillars (arkan) of adjudication . These pillars comprise the judge, the legal basis of the verdict (al-maqdiyyu bihi), the prevailing party, the subject matter of litigation, the party ruled against, and the procedure of adjudication . Under these pillars, the book examines judicial qualifications, courtroom conduct, appointment of deputies, arbitration, overturn of judgments, legal actions against absent parties, court registrations (tasjilat), claims (da'awa), oaths, and the rules of witness testimony .
- Part Two: Evidentiary Proofs (al-Bayyinat): Comprises fifty-one chapters detailing the categories of evidence and equivalent proofs through which disputes are decided, ranging from rulings based on four witnesses to judgments rendered on individual testimonies or specific oaths .
- Part Three: Rulings of Governance (Ahkam al-siyasa al-shariyya): Treats legal and discretionary policies, penalties, and administrative justice .
Attribution and Sources
While widely transmitted under al-Tarabulsi's name, Haji Khalifa recorded marginal notes on manuscript copies attributing the work to other scholars: one note transmitted by Arabzadah ascribed it to Ala al-Din al-Aswad, while Ali ibn al-Hinna'i attributed it to Husam al-Din al-Kawsaj . Modern editorial assessments note that al-Tarabulsi drew extensively on earlier judicial manuals, including Tabsirat al-Hukkam by Ibn Farhun and al-Ihkam by Shihab al-Din al-Qarafi .
Publication History
The work has been published in several historical and modern editions, including an edition printed in Bulaq in 1300 AH, an edition by al-Matba'a al-Maymaniyya in Cairo in 1310 AH with Ibn al-Shihnah's Lisan al-Hukkam in its margin, and a later printing by Mustafa al-Babi al-Halabi in 1393 AH (1973 CE) .
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