Description

A network of private Islamic courts has operated in India since at least the 1920s. These courts–also known as dar ul qazas–largely handle Muslim women’s faskh divorce claims. More broadly, these Islamic non-state courts do important work that the secular state in India needs done, but cannot or will not do itself. Indeed, one might characterize this situation as one of ‘secular need’ of the Islamic non-state. This seminar will illustrate how this secular need manifests–in both its day-to-day material, and broader ideological dimensions–as well as how an appreciation of this secular need enhances our understanding of longstanding tensions between secular and Islamic legal actors in India.

About The Speaker

Jeff’s research interests are in the areas of comparative law and religion, Islamic law, legal pluralism, family law, and law & sexuality. He has lectured widely on these topics in North America, South Asia, and Europe, including recently being a Visiting Professor at l’Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) in Paris, a Visiting Fellow at the Käte Hamburger Kolleg Centre for Advanced Study of Law as Culture (Recht Als Kultur) in Germany, and Visiting Faculty at the Shaikh Ahmad Hassan School of Law at the Lahore University of Management Sciences in Pakistan. Jeff has held research fellowships at Yale Law School (Oscar M. Ruebhausen program), Harvard Law School (Islamic Legal Studies Program), and Columbia Law School (Center for the Study of Law and Culture). He earned his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. While with the Australia India Institute and the Melbourne Law School, Jeff is furthering his study of a network of non-state Muslim courts in India and the relationship of the Indian state with these Muslim courts. His current research projects also include recent developments in transgender rights in Pakistan and India.