In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Ever-Merciful.
May Allah bless our master Muhammad, his family, and grant them peace.

Book of Suretyship and Guarantee

Ḍamān, kafāla, and ḥamāla are three terms that share the same meaning. Thus, whoever says, “I stand surety for what you have against So-and-so,” or, “I am his ḥamīl or zaʿīm,” becomes liable.

Providing surety for every established and binding claim is permissible; but if the right has not yet become confirmed and due, guaranteeing it is invalid.

Guaranteeing the emancipation contract (mukātaba) of a slave is void.

According to Mālik, there is no objection to standing surety for an unspecified amount. If someone guarantees another person’s debt without knowing its exact value, he is bound for whatever amount the evidence later proves. Likewise, if a man says to another, “Do business with so-and-so, and I guarantee whatever you deal with him for,” he is liable for whatever is established against that person in transactions of the kind usually conducted with someone like him.

No suretyship is valid with respect to any of the ḥudūd penalties, retribution (qiṣāṣ), or the wounds that entail them.