How is a shared alleyway (darb) divided when two neighbors, each owning an adjacent door, claim the entire alley, and no other person has access to it?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Settlement
Primary text
The division of the alleyway yields three principal rulings. The first ruling states that the alley is divided between them from its beginning up to the door belonging to the first claimant; this shared portion is for mutual passage. The remainder of the alley, towards its end, belongs exclusively to the second claimant because only that person has the right of passage there, granting them possession and disposition over that section. The second ruling dictates that the division runs from the beginning of the alley up to the end of the first claimant's wall, with that section being shared between them. This is based on the principle that the first owner has the right to open his door into any part of his wall. Everything beyond that section belongs to the second owner, as it is not considered the courtyard or domain of the first owner, nor does the first owner have passage rights there. The third ruling declares the entire alley to be shared between them because both parties have established possession and use over the whole space.