Spousal Financial Claims in Iranian Law: An Analysis of Ujrat al-Mithl and Niḥlah

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Law, Faculty of Humanities, Damghan University, Damghan, Iran.

2 Assistant Professor of Private Law, Faculty of Law and Political Science, University of Mazandaran , Babolsar, Iran.

3 PhD Student in Private Law, University of Mazandaran, Babolsar, Iran.

Abstract

Ujrat al-mithl refers to compensation that a husband pays his wife in exchange for tasks she performs in his household, which she is not religiously obligated to undertake. Nihlah is another right granted to Muslim women under specific conditions. This article examines ujrat al-mithl and nihlah in light of the Family Protection Law, addressing the following question: What is the legal standing of ujrat al-mithl and nihlah for a wife according to Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) and the Family Protection Law? The findings indicate that prior to the enactment of the amendment to Article 336 of the Civil Code, a wife could only demand ujrat al-mithl at the time of divorce. However, the legislature, recognizing ujrat al-mithl as a wife’s right, established specific conditions for its claim through the aforementioned amendment. Nevertheless, despite the passage of the new Family Protection Law, the issue of the wife’s intent (qasd) or lack thereof to perform tasks gratuitously (tabarruʿ) remains a major source of dispute regarding claims for ujrat al-mithl. As for nihlah, despite the repeal of Note 6 of the Single Article of the Law Amending Divorce Regulations (1992)—except for clause (b)—it remains enforceable as a safeguard against the abuse of the right to divorce (ḥaqq al-ṭalāq).

Keywords

References

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