Home  ›  Ilm Hub  ›  Glossary  ›  Usul al-Fiqh
Ilm Hub

Usul al-Fiqh

The theory of legal method — how rulings are derived from the sources.

This is legal information only. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to a lawyer.

The theory of legal method — how rulings are derived from the sources.

In Islamic law

The discipline governing how the Qur'an, Sunnah, consensus and analogy generate rulings. Differences in usul are what produce differences in inheritance outcomes between the schools.

In Canadian law

No direct analogue, though the relationship between statute, precedent and interpretation plays a comparable role in Canadian law.

Across the madhahib

We have not yet researched whether the four Sunni schools differ on this term, so we are not going to tell you either way. Where a specific case turns on it, ask a qualified scholar rather than relying on a general summary.

Note

This is legal information only. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to a lawyer.

Citations & sources

Every factual claim on this page traces to a source below. Details change — check the original source before relying on any figure, fee or legal position.

Scholarly & institutional references
  1. Encyclopaedia of Islam — Brill
  2. Oxford Islamic Studies / Oxford Reference — Oxford University Press