Is the acknowledgment (Istilhāq) of a fetus by the father valid?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mutual Imprecation (Li'an)
Primary text
There are differing views regarding the validity of a father acknowledging paternity of a fetus (while the mother is still pregnant). The explicit established position from Ahmad ibn Hanbal is that the acknowledgment is not valid. Those who permit the denial (Nafy) of the fetus's paternity also rule that its acknowledgment is invalid. This view aligns with the position of the Shafi'i school. The rationale is that the fetus is already legally presumed to exist, evidenced by the obligation to provide maintenance (Nafaqah) and the provisional allocation of inheritance. Therefore, an acknowledgment should be valid, similar to a child already born. If acknowledgment occurs, subsequent denial is barred, mirroring the situation after birth.
Supporting text
The counterargument states that if acknowledgment were valid during pregnancy, the father would be obligated to provide maintenance simply by refraining from denial, which is unanimously not the case (as it is after birth). Furthermore, because the principle of resemblance (Shabah) has an effect in establishing lineage, exemplified by the case of Li'an (mutual cursing), and since Li'an is exclusive to the post-birth situation, the validity of acknowledgment should also be restricted to after birth.