Explaining the Sunnah in writing the legal contract, and drafting the written legal contract in the presence of Shaykh Al-Albani.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good, our brother 'Aziz is here now. As was mentioned to me and conveyed to me, he wishes to draft the contract in your presence so that you may remind him and advise him if there is anything, so that this may be the first contract drafted in your presence in accordance with the Sunnah. Let us apply the Sunnah practically in the written drafting. May Allah reward you with good. Let him start, and we will see if there is anything we are not aware of, so we may benefit from you. May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : I believe it is not hidden from him, if Allah wills, that the Sunnah of the legal contract is to begin with that supplication or that opening known as the Khutbat al-Hajah (sermon of need). The custom has restricted the Khutbat al-Hajah to the marriage contract, although this restriction has, unfortunately, become forgotten regarding official, legal, or regulatory contracts. There is no basis in the Shari'ah for restricting this sermon to the marriage contract, because it is called the Khutbat al-Hajah, and need is not limited to the marriage contract; rather, it is broader than that. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would deliver it before his sermons, and the Friday sermon is not the only one specifically mentioned; rather, he (peace and blessings be upon him) would begin with it every speech he delivered to the people. So the Khutbat al-Hajah is what should precede the sermons of preachers, whether these sermons are the Friday sermon, the Eid sermon, a lecture sermon, or anything else. It should be the beginning and opening of every speech in which the speaker hopes to find its good effect in the hearts of those to whom he delivers his sermon, lecture, or lesson.
This sermon should be used generally before every sermon. And although the custom, as we said earlier, restricted it to the marriage contract, this opening has become abandoned and neglected even for the marriage sermon. I believe the professor who will now draft the regulatory contract, because the legal contract has, in my opinion, already taken place, as it is said today, automatically, since the suitor, the bride, and her guardian are known. However, among the customs is that any contract is not realized except by the tongue, saying "I give you in marriage," "I marry you to you," and similar words. This is not a condition in the Shari'ah, especially since among the legal maxims circulating among scholars is their saying: "The tongue of reality is more eloquent than the tongue of speech." But in the way of following the Sunnah, it is necessary, before the contract which the contracting party may sometimes need to formalize, to explicitly state the contract between so-and-so and so-and-so, with the permission of the guardian. But before that, it is necessary to present the aforementioned Khutbat al-Hajah, even if only with the minimum phrase: "Indeed, all praise is due to Allah; we praise Him, seek His help, and seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and the badness of our deeds. Whom Allah guides, there is no one who can misguide him, and whom He misguides, there is no one who can guide him. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone, with no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger." This amount is necessary before any contract. Then, if there is a need for clarification, it is clarified and recorded. We do not see any objection to this recording, provided it is also within the limits of the Shari'ah, after presenting the Khutbat al-Hajah. As for this blessed gathering, if Allah wills, this sermon has already been delivered more than once. So I say: Our professor knows it, if Allah wills, and he will adhere to it whenever he is tasked with a contract like this one, if Allah wills.

The questioner : So can we say now: The legal contract has been concluded now?

The Shaykh : I believe so. And as he is a legal official, we ask him about his conviction and benefit from it. Is there anything hidden, for example, regarding the regulations?

The questioner : May Allah bless you, O Shaykh. We usually explain to people that this contract is not the legal contract. Many contracts are not the legal contract; the legal contract is the request when the delegation goes, for example, to ask for the girl and consent is given. That acceptance is the legal contract. As for what we write, it is not the legal contract, but rather for preserving rights with the government and registering them in the civil status records and the like.

The Shaykh : And that is so. But in my opinion, not every regulatory contract is usually preceded by the legal contract. Therefore, in my opinion—and Allah knows best—it is necessary to combine the legal contract with the regulatory contract and to present the legal contract before the regulatory contract.