What is the ruling if a man accuses his wife, performs Li'an, and then accuses her of the original adultery?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Mutual Imprecation (Li'an)
Primary text
If a man accuses his wife, performs Li'an (mutual cursing), and then accuses her of the original adultery for which the Li'an was performed, no Hadd is due because he established her falsehood through the Li'an. This is supported by the general scholarly position including Ibn Abbas, Zuhri, Shafi'i, and Malik.
Supporting text
There is a dissenting view from the Qadi that a Hadd is due, analogous to the case where a non-relative accuses her after the Li'an. Furthermore, if he accuses her of a different adultery after Li'an, the Hadd is due because she became separate from him (ajnabiyyah) by the Li'an, unless he attributes the adultery to the time of marriage. If he attributes it to the marriage period, he may perform Li'an to negate paternity if that is his intent; otherwise, the Hadd is incumbent, and Li'an is not permissible.