What must a man mention when he claims to have married a woman?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Claims and Evidences
Primary text
When a man claims marriage (*nikah*), he is required to state the conditions (*shara'it*) of the marriage. This declaration must include affirming marriage by a guiding guardian (*wali murshid*), two just witnesses (*shahiday 'adl*), and her consent, if her consent is a prerequisite. This is the explicit position of Al-Shafi'i. The necessity of stating conditions arises because scholars differ regarding the prerequisites for marriage, such as the requirement of a guardian, witnesses, or the permission of a mature virgin's father. A judge should not rule on the validity of a marriage if the claimant is ignorant of these conditions, and the validity is not established unless the conditions are explicitly stated and proven by evidence. This differs from property claims where the means of establishing rights may be obscure, whereas contracts like marriage have numerous specific conditions.
Supporting text
Abu Hanifa and Malik hold that the claimant does not need to mention the conditions of marriage because it is a form of ownership (*milk*), similar to the ownership of a slave. They argue that one does not need to state that the woman is not in her waiting period (*'iddah*) or an apostate (*murtaddah*).