Is it permissible to pay a bribe to settle matters that cannot be settled without a bribe?

The questioner : Do we pay a bribe out of dire necessity to facilitate matters that cannot be settled without a bribe?

The Shaykh : Naturally, a bribe is not permissible except in one case, which is when the one paying the bribe has a right that he cannot reach except through the means of a bribe. For example, a judge rules in favor of Zayd regarding a right he has against 'Amr, but the judge delays in delivering this right to Zayd, the owner of the right. If Zayd feels that this judge will not actually deliver his right to him unless he offers him a bribe, then such a bribe is permissible. At the same time, it is not permissible for the judge to accept it, because it is obligatory upon him by the Shari'ah to deliver the right to its owner by virtue of his judging by the law of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). This is because a bribe, in both linguistic and legal meaning, is paying money to nullify a right or to establish a falsehood. If the payment is to establish a right or to nullify a falsehood, then it is not a bribe, even though it is not permissible for the one receiving it, because it falls under what Allah has forbidden in His saying: .