you will be liable for the capital.
Thus, anyone who is negligent or oversteps the limits is liable in every case, whether or not the duty of safeguarding the funds was expressly laid upon him; spelling it out, however, provides an added layer of security and impresses upon the agent that he must neither neglect the funds nor transgress the agreed limits.
8 – In essence, any condition set by either the owner or the agent is valid and enforceable so long as it does not contradict the ruling of Allah by introducing injustice, excessive uncertainty, ignorance, speculation, or similar harms into the partnership. Any clause of that sort is null and void. Allah knows best.
Supplementary Benefits
1 – This partnership is called muḍārabah, from the Qurʾanic expression ḍarb fī l-arḍ, meaning to travel. Allah the Exalted says, “They travel through the land seeking the bounty of Allah, while others fight [in His cause]” (Q 73:20). Characteristically, the working partner journeys with the capital to trade and procure goods.
2 – Muḍārabah is among the contracts sanctioned by the Sharia through the Sunnah and the consensus of the scholars. Sound reason likewise affirms its permissibility, for people need such an arrangement: money must be traded and circulated in commercial dealings.
3 – Profit is divided between the two parties according to whatever ratio they stipulate. Whether one partner’s share increases or decreases depends on timing, the nature of the work, and other relevant factors. If they merely say, “The profit is between us,” it is understood to be split equally, half and half.
4 – If the owner and the agent later dispute who is entitled to the stipulated share, the well-known view of the two Imams, al-Shāfiʿī and Aḥmad, is that it belongs to the agent, whether small or great, because it is earned through his labour, whose yield naturally varies with his level of skill.
5 – If the partnership incurs a loss, that loss falls on the capital of the owner; the agent’s loss consists in the waste of his effort and labour.