What is the ruling if the contracted person is capable of performance but refuses, claiming incapacity?

General Chapter

Al-Mughni

Book of Mukātaba (Contractual Manumission)

Book 68 · Issue 5 · Bab 1

Open in Qurani

Primary text

If the contracted person is capable of performing the payment and possesses what they ought to pay, yet refuses and claims incapacity, the master (*Sayyid*) has the right to rescind the *Kitabah*. This view is held by Al-Sharif Abu Ja'far and a group of later scholars of our school, aligning with the apparent meaning of Al-Khiraqi's statement that the master's right to rescind is conditioned upon the non-performance. This is the madhab of Al-Shafi'i.

Supporting text

Abu Bakr bin Ja'far holds that the master does not have this right, but rather must compel the contracted person to deliver the consideration. This is the view of Abu Hanifa, Malik, and Al-Awza'i.