Question:
Asalamalikum. I am a Muslim lady living in USA. I have been legally divorced by the court since 2019. I am trying to get my Islamic divorce but my ex-husband is not granting it if I don’t agree to his rules. Seeking your help in divorcing me from him.
Answer:
Assalamualaikum,
Dear Ma’am,
After I sent my reply for your query to the webmaster on eshaykh.com to post I forwarded the gist of your query to a shaykh in Beirut who has experience in the matter. I added my own question, which was: “If there was a nikah contract followed by a civil marriage certificate followed by a civil divorce, does the civil divorce (in a US court) constitute a valid talaq in the eyes of the Shari`a?”
This is the translation of his reply:
“If the words used in the statement of the civil divorce explicitly denote talaq in the [English] language, then talaq has (already) definitely taken place. All that is needed is for there to be a word that is explicit in declaring talaq, and as you know the word ‘divorce’ in the English language is the official word for it, so if it has been used then talaq has been effected.”
So the above reply shows that if divorce was effected in 2019 then there is no need for any further pronouncement in the eyes of the Shari`a because your talaq took place without doubt at that time, four years ago. And Allah knows best.
Dr. Gibril Fouad Haddad
