Flirting with God in Western Secular Courts: Mahr in the West

Fournier, Pascale

doi:10.1093/lawfam/ebp011

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…Moreover, South Asians represent a much smaller portion of American Muslims than is the case in Britain (African Americans and Arabs represent the other major groupings). The American legal response to Islam-related court cases suggests a somewhat greater wariness to refer to religion in judgments than one finds in Britain (see also Fournier, 2010). It is hard to imagine an American equivalent of the Archbishop of Canterbury's speech-which was seconded by the highest ranking English judge, Lord Phillips.…”

Section: Religion-state Ambiguities In the United Statesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Islamic Adaptations to Western Europe and North America

Bowen

2011

American Behavioral Scientist

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The article examines the ways Islamic leaders have adapted to conditions in Britain, France, and the United States by taking one problem—how a Muslim woman can obtain a religious divorce—and identifying contrasts across those three countries. It emphasizes two contrasts among the three countries: the degree of residential concentration of Muslims and the social effects such concentration may have, and the legal legitimacy of religion in civil courts. Muslim leaders have crafted institutions accordingly: in Britain, shariah councils emerging from tight-knit communities and regarded by jurists as relatively benign; in France, Islamic leaders constrained to emphasize the Islamic legitimacy of civil institutions; and in the United States, leaders developing contractual instruments in response to relatively favorable judicial reactions.

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Section: Religion-state Ambiguities In the United Statesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Islamic Adaptations to Western Europe and North America

Bowen

2011

American Behavioral Scientist

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“…142 The second approach Fournier describes is the formal equality approach. 143 In this instance, the mahr as an enforceable contractual issue on the basis of the marriage agreement. court refused to enforce the mahr (as part of the Iranian matrimonial law), on the basis that the law was considered archaic and repugnant to the ideas of substantial justice in the province.…”

Section: Canadian Caveatmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The third approach is one of substantial equality, where the mahr is viewed under the umbrella of Western family law, and "the judge engages in sexual identity politics: gendered understanding of mahr. "145 Again, the Canadian courts differ in the application of this principle. In Quebec, in MHD v EA, the court argued that the mahr is a "religious custom … [that] has an effect on substantive equality", making it enforceable in light of the rules of equity, and found that the mahr as due even though the wife initiated the divorce 146.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Protecting a Wife Financially at the Time of Divorce – A Comparison Between South African Women Married in Terms of South African Civil Law and Islamic Law, With Specific Reference to the Mahr

Carnelley¹,

Bhamjee²

2021

Obiter

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This article compares the South African civil-law and Islamic-law positions with regard to the financial protective measures available to a wife at the time of marriage and divorce. In this regard, the respective matrimonial property systems are discussed, with special emphasis on civil antenuptial and Muslim marriage contracts. In addition, other protective measures inherent to the two systems to prevent prejudice both during the marriage and at the time of divorce, are discussed. It is submitted that, although the provisions of Islamic law do not provide the same financial protection for wives compared to the South African civil law, the Islamic concept of mahr could potentially be used in the Muslim marriage contract to enhance financial security of a Muslim wife at the time of divorce. The article also considers dual marriages where the same spouses marry each other in terms of both civil and Islamic law. In particular, the incorporation of the Islamic concept of mahr into civil antenuptial contracts is discussed with reference to the legal position in Canada to illustrate potential legal problems.

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“…Although mahr's primary function may be to provide financial security for women in a Muslim marriage, it can also represent asymmetric economic effects for different groups of women when practised as a legal rule in Western societies. Pascal Fournier, for instance, has shown how mahr not only entails a potential financial bonus for the wife after divorce, but also a moral victory, personal revenge or an act of liberation (Fournier 2010).…”

Section: The Relevance and Impact Of Norway's Mahr Regulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lived Experiences of Norway’s Regulation ofMahr(the Muslim Dower)

Bøe¹

2018

NJRS

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This article examines Norway's regulation of marriage rituals in light of how members of the Iranian diaspora in Norway practise mahr (the Muslim dower). Norway and Iran present conflicting regulations on mahr. In Norway's regulation of marriage rituals, mahr is not approved as it contravenes "Norwegian law and general gender equality principles" (Bufdir 2015). In Iran, however, mahr constitutes a mandatory aspect in the country's marriage registration procedure. Hence, individuals involved in transnational Iranian-Norwegian marriages are caught in a dilemma. Building on interviews with members of the Iranian diaspora in Norway and their lived experiences of mahr on the one hand, and documents relevant for Norway's marriage ritual regulation on the other, I explore the complexities and challenges involved in transnational Norwegian-Iranian marriages. A key finding is that the interviewees' continued practices of mahr subvert and challenge the mahr interpretation at work in Norway's regulation of marriage rituals.

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Flirting with God in Western Secular Courts: Mahr in the West

Cited by 11 publications

References 2 publications

Islamic Adaptations to Western Europe and North America

Islamic Adaptations to Western Europe and North America

Protecting a Wife Financially at the Time of Divorce – A Comparison Between South African Women Married in Terms of South African Civil Law and Islamic Law, With Specific Reference to the Mahr

Lived Experiences of Norway’s Regulation ofMahr(the Muslim Dower)

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