What is the ruling regarding the emancipation of a slave jointly owned by three masters when they emancipate him simultaneously or through delegation?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Manumission
Primary text
If three masters emancipate their jointly owned slave simultaneously, either by explicit simultaneous utterance, by linking emancipation to a single condition which is then met, or by delegating a single agent (or two delegating to the third) to emancipate their shares, the slave becomes entirely free. The right of manumission (Wala') is divided among them proportionally to their shares. This is based on the Hadith, "The Wala' belongs only to the one who emancipated," as each master emancipated his own portion. There is no known disagreement among scholars regarding this issue.