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He assumed the office of Hanafī judge at the end of (776 AH), as deputy to his cousin Najm al-Dīn, who was transferred to a judgeship in Egypt in Muharram (777 AH). After one hundred days, Najm al-Dīn requested to be relieved of his judicial duties and was transferred to Damascus. Ibn Abī al-‘Izz, the commentator on al-Tahāwī’s creed, was appointed Hanafī judge in Egypt in his place in Jumādā al-Ākhira of that year. He served as judge for approximately two months, then requested to be relieved. His request was granted, and he returned to Damascus to resume his posts at al-Qaymāziyya and al-Jawhariyya and his preaching duties.
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Among his works is al-Tanbīh ‘alā Mushkilāt al-Hidāya (Drawing Attention to Difficult Passages in al-Hidāya), mentioned by al-Sakhāwī and others. Al-Hidāya (Guidance) is one of the authoritative works of the Hanafī school. Its author was ‘Alī ibn Abī Bakr al-Farghānī al-Marghīnānī al-Hanafī, who died in 593 AH1.
Nevertheless, he was not fanatically attached to the school. Among his valuable works in this regard is al-Ittibā‘ (Following):
“It is a refutation of the treatise written by his contemporary Akmal al-Dīn Muhammad ibn Mahmūd ibn Ahmad al-Hanafī, who died in 786 AH. In it, he argued that following the school of Abū Hanīfa—may Allah have mercy on him—was preferable and urged others to do so. Ibn Abī al-‘Izz found problematic passages in it and wished to draw attention to them, for fear of forbidden division and the pursuit of ruinous desires. His refutation was wholly successful, for he—may Allah have mercy on him—adopted a scholarly approach that reflected great courtesy, compelling argument, breadth of learning, freedom from blameworthy partisanship, and an earnest desire to unite hearts and remove obstacles”2.
The purpose of the foregoing is to expose the writer’s lie in claiming that Ibn Abī al-‘Izz is mistakenly identified as a Hanafī.