Chapter: Judicial Oaths in Litigation

An oath is one of the recognized instruments of adjudication, for the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The oath is incumbent upon the one who denies.”

Accordingly, when the plaintiff has no evidence, the oath is taken by the defendant. It terminates the court dispute but does not extinguish the underlying right: if the claimant later succeeds in producing proof, he is allowed to present it, his evidence is heard, and judgment is entered in his favor. Likewise, should the person who swore the oath later retract it and pay what he owes, his payment is accepted and the claimant may lawfully receive it.

The oath is confined to claims involving ḥuqūq al-ādāmīyīn (the private rights of individuals); only in such matters are litigants required to swear.

As for the rights of Allah—matters of worship and the ḥudūd (prescribed punishments)—no oath is administered. Thus, if someone says, “I have paid my zakat,” or “I have fulfilled the expiation or vow that was due from me,” his word is accepted without an oath. Similarly, a person who denies that a ḥadd (prescribed punishment) applies to him is not put under oath, for it is recommended to conceal such matters; moreover, were he to confess and then withdraw his confession, his retraction would be accepted and he would be released. All the more reason, then, that no oath should be demanded from him in the absence of any confession.