What is the lineage and status of a child born to a concubine taken by a mukātab?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mukātaba (Contractual Manumission)
Primary text
If the concubine becomes pregnant by the mukātab, the paternity is established because the legal punishment was waived due to doubt in ownership. The child belongs to the mukātab because she is the mother of his child. However, the child is not immediately freed because the mukātab's ownership is incomplete. The child's status is suspended contingent upon the father's manumission contract. If the father fulfills the contract and is freed, the child is also freed because he becomes the son of a free man. If the father defaults and reverts to full servitude, the child also becomes a slave, owned by the master.