Muslim Law Practice Course (2nd Edition) by The Centre for Asian Legal Studies

(L-R): Ustaz Mohammad Hannan Hassan (MUIS), Associate Professor Arif Jamal (NUS Law), Alfian Yasrif Bin Kuchit (Syariah Court), Professor Dato’ Sri Dr. Zaleha binti Kamaruddin (International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization), Associate Professor Jaclyn Neo ’03 (NUS Law) and Ms Tan Gee Keow (Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth)

The Centre for Asian Legal Studies (CALS) convened the second edition of the Muslim Law Practice Course on 21 and 22 February 2020. Co-convened by Associate Professor Arif Jamal and Associate Professor Jaclyn Neo ’03, this course is a collaboration between CALS, the Syariah Court of Singapore and the MUIS Academy, and supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY). The course serves to provide more systematic training in Muslim law for practitioners and other interested parties. The aim is to contribute to a holistic and contextualised understanding of the theory and practice of Islamic law in Singapore.

The course spanned three modules with topics on “Administration of Muslim Family Law in Singapore”, “Muslim Inheritance Law” and “Principles and Practice of Muslim Family Law in Singapore”. The course is carefully designed such that each iteration establishes some baseline knowledge, while also varying from previous years so that participants can build knowledge over time. This year, participants came from a range of backgrounds, including the Legal Aid Bureau, Ministry of Law, MCCY, the Family Justice Courts and various law firms.

Associate Professor Arif Jamal delivered the first part of Module 1, focusing on the historical background of Islamic law, its sources and its development in Southeast Asia and Singapore. This session introduced an overview of the early developments of Islamic law and the formation of various schools of juristic thought. Knowledge of the formative period in its historical context is pertinent to comprehending contemporary themes in Islamic law.  Additionally, the primary and secondary sources of classical Islamic jurisprudence as tools for independent reasoning (ijtihad) were discussed. This session also contextualised these developments as they have developed in Southeast Asia and Singapore. It touched on the consideration of customary and state laws in issuing legal edicts. The plurality of thought and application within Islamic scholarly works was discussed throughout.

Next, Professor (Adj.) Kevin YL Tan ’86 took a historical look at the origins of the Administration of Muslim Law Act (AMLA), starting from its antecedent, the Mohamedan Marriage Ordinance (Ord V of 1880). Prof Tan discussed the various social and political forces that led to the enactment of legislation specifically addressed to Muslims as well as for the establishment of the Mohamedan Advisory Board (later the Muslim Advisory Board), the transformation of the Mohamedan Marriage Ordinance to the Muslims Ordinance (1957) and finally AMLA. Also considered were the key features of the various legislative enactments through the years.

Module 2 began with Associate Professor Arif Jamal discussing the main ‘objectives’ of Muslim Law (i.e., the “maqasid al-shari’a”) as derived from the scriptural and traditional sources and how they have been interpreted in contemporary contexts, particularly in Singapore. Mr Ustaz Irwan Hadi Mohd Shuhaimy, from the Office of the Mufti, then brought the participants through a range of examples with a focus on fatwas on inheritance and financial matters as specific case studies to examine how the objectives of Muslim Law are applied to facilitate the socio-religious life of Muslims in advanced economies. The discussion covered the prerequisites of Muslim Inheritance Law (faraid) and will (wasiat).  Ustaz Irwan also covered the background of local fatwas (legal edicts) on faraid and wasiat which applied in the contemporary context particularly in Singapore.

In the last module, Professor Dato’ Sri Dr. Zaleha binti Kamaruddin from the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation delivered an interactive lecture, focused on the application of Islamic Family Law concepts in contemporary context. The case study method was utilised during this discussion and emphasised on the critical analysis of reported cases on Islamic Family Law. Guided discussions on major and complex cases were conducted to understand how judges interpret primary and secondary sources in deriving their decisions.

Director of the Centre for Asian Legal Studies (CALS) and Course Co-Convenor Associate Professor Jaclyn Neo ’03 (NUS Law) gave her welcome address.

Participants from a range of background, including the Legal Aid Bureau, Ministry of Law, MCCY, the Family Justice Courts and various law firms.

Deputy Director of CALS & Course Co-Convenor Associate Professor Arif Jamal (NUS Law) delivering his lecture on the history and jurisprudence of Islamic law.

Professor (Adj.) Kevin YL Tan ’86 (NUS Law) speaking on the history of the administration of Muslim law in Singapore.

Ustaz Irwan Hadi Mohd Shuhaimy (MUIS) speaking on Principles of Islamic Inheritance Law.

Dr Zaleha bte Kamaruddin (International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation) speaking on the principles of formation of marriage.

Dr Gary Low from the Attorney-General Chambers asking a question.

Dr Zaleha having a discussion with a participant

Associate Professor Jaclyn Neo ’03 presented Certificates of Participation to participants who completed the three modules.

Associate Professor Arif Jamal interacting with one of the participants