acceptance is permissible up to what custom allows, though it is preferable that he reciprocate. A judge may not execute a ruling in his own favor, nor in favor of his slave or a partner with whom he shares joint property; according to the sound view he is likewise barred from ruling for his ascendants or descendants. Judgment for him or for any of these parties must be rendered by the ruler or by another judge, and—on the sound view—the same restriction applies to the judge’s own deputy.
If the defendant confesses, or refuses the oath and the plaintiff then swears, and the plaintiff asks the judge to testify to the confession made before him, to the oath, or to the ruling thereby established, the judge is obliged to do so. Should the plaintiff instead request the judge to prepare either a maḥḍar (written record) of what transpired without a ruling, or a sijill (formal certificate) of the ruling, it is recommended that the judge comply—though another opinion makes compliance obligatory—and it is recommended that two copies be made, one for the plaintiff and the other kept in the court’s register.
When a judge has ruled by ijtihād and it later becomes clear that the ruling contradicts an explicit text of the Qur’an, the Sunnah, the consensus, or an unmistakable analogy, he and every other judge must rescind it; the same does not apply where the contradiction concerns a subtle analogy. Judicial decisions take effect outwardly, not inwardly, and by consensus a judge may not rule against what he knows to be the truth. The stronger opinion is that he may rule on the basis of his personal knowledge, except in the ḥudūd prescribed by Allah.
If he finds a document containing his earlier ruling or testimony, or two witnesses testify that he issued such a ruling or testimony, he may neither rely on that document nor give testimony until the matter returns to his memory; there is, however, another view in both cases that allows reliance on a document that has been kept securely in custody. He may also swear to his entitlement to a right—or to having discharged it—on the basis of the handwriting of a predecessor, provided he trusts both the script and the predecessor’s integrity. The sounder position likewise allows one to transmit hadith from a written copy that has been safely preserved in one’s possession.
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The judge must treat the two litigants alike with respect to access to his presence, standing for them, listening to them, the pleasantness of his countenance, returning their greeting, and their seating; the preponderant view, however, is that a Muslim may be accorded precedence over a dhimmī in these matters. Once the two have sat down, the judge may either remain silent or say, “Let the plaintiff speak.” When the plaintiff states his claim, the judge asks the defendant for a response: if the defendant admits, that settles the matter; if he denies, the judge may then say to the plaintiff….