Modernization, Codification and the Judicial Analysis: Exploring Predictability in Law in Sharī‘a Courts in Saudi Arabia Haitham H. Osta A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Washington 2015 Reading Committee: Gregory A. Hicks, Chair Louis E. Wolcher Michael Townsend Program Authorized to Offer Degree: School of Law ©Copyright 2015 Haitham H. Osta i University of Washington Abstract Modernization, Codification and the Judicial Analysis: Exploring Predictability in Law in Sharī‘a Courts in Saudi Arabia Haitham H. Osta Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Dean Gregory Hicks School of Law The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is undergoing a process of rapid, profound social transformation and economic development. As a result, some Saudis have argued that the legal system of Saudi Arabia should also undergo a profound transformation to meet the requirements of the rapidly changing society. In particular, some have advocated the idea of “codifying” the version of Islamic law, or Sharī‘a, that is recognized as the law of Saudi Arabia. This argument is justified in part by the ability of codification to enhance predictability in the legal system that the current traditional analysis of Sharī‘a law within Sharī‘a Courts does not offer, as argued by some Saudi progressives. While many other Islamic countries have done just that, the idea of codifying Sharī‘a is much more controversial in Saudi Arabia. This dissertation explores the actual status of predictability within the current judicial analysis of Sharī‘a Courts focusing on the perspective of the Saudi lawyers. The dissertation also explores why the idea of codification is so intensely controversial within Saudi Arabia. ii Table of Contents ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................. II LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... V LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... V ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .......................................................................................................... VI TRANSLATION AND TRANSLITERATION GUIDE ....................................................... VII GLOSSARY ................................................................................................................................ IX INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 1 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 3 I. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ...................................................................................................... 3 II. THE SHARĪ‘A COURTS (AL-MAḤĀKIM AL-SHAR‘IYYA) ................................................................ 5 III. RESOLUTION NUMBER (3) OF 1928 ........................................................................................ 7 IV. PREDICTABILITY IN LAW: IMPORTANCE AND MEANINGS ....................................................... 8 V. THESIS GOALS ....................................................................................................................... 10 VI. RESEARCH QUESTIONS ........................................................................................................ 10 VII. HYPOTHESIS ....................................................................................................................... 10 VIII. SIGNIFICANCE AND CONTRIBUTION TO LEGAL SCHOLARSHIP ........................................... 11 IX. METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................... 13 1. General Approach: ................................................................................................................................................... 16 2. Description of the Population ............................................................................................................................. 20 3. Sampling ....................................................................................................................................................................... 27 4. Participants’ Criteria .............................................................................................................................................. 29 5. Recruitment ................................................................................................................................................................ 32 X. THESIS ORGANIZATION ......................................................................................................... 33 CHAPTER TWO: PERSPECTIVES ON MODERNIZATION EXPERIENCE IN SAUDI ARABIA ....................................................................................................................................... 37 I. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................... 37 II. WHAT IS MODERNIZATION? .................................................................................................. 37 III. THE MAJOR ASPECTS OF MODERNIZATION .......................................................................... 42 IV. THE SAUDI ARABIAN MODERNIZATION EXPERIENCE .......................................................... 45 V. THE SAUDI ARABIAN MODERNIZATION IN ACTION ............................................................... 50 VI. PERSPECTIVES ON MODERNIZATION EXPERIENCE IN SAUDI ARABIA ................................... 52 VII. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................... 54 iii CHAPTER THREE: CODIFICATION CONTROVERSY IN SAUDI ARABIA ............... 56 I. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND .................................................................................................... 57 II. MEANING OF CODIFICATION WITHIN THE SAUDI CONTEXT ................................................... 61 III. PRESENTATION OF THE CODIFICATION ARGUMENT IN SAUDI ARABIA ................................. 63 IV. ARGUMENT OF CODIFICATION AMONG SAUDI ‘ULAMĀ’ ...................................................... 70 1. SEEKING HISTORICAL SUPPORT ..................................................................................... 72 2. THE RULER’S RIGHT TO BIND BY IJTIHĀD ...................................................................... 77 V. IS IT TRUE THAT CODIFICATION REDUCES THE ROLE OF JUDGES AND THEREFORE ENHANCES PREDICTABILITY? ...................................................................................................................... 85 VI. CODIFICATION IN FIELD ....................................................................................................... 88 VII. CONCLUDING ANALYSIS ..................................................................................................... 96 CHAPTER FOUR: THE METHODOLOGY OF JUDICIAL ANALYSIS IN SHARĪ‘A COURTS IN SAUDI ARABIA ................................................................................................ 106 I. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW ........................................................................................................ 106 II. THE TEXT OF THE RESOLUTION NUMBER (3) OF RAJAB, 1347H (JUNE 25, 1928) ................ 109 III. EXAMPLES OF SOLVING CASES FOLLOWING THE JUDICIAL ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY ..... 111 ANALYSIS ................................................................................................................................ 114 IV. JUDICIAL ANALYSIS IN THE FIELD ...................................................................................... 115 V. CONCLUDING ANALYSIS ..................................................................................................... 140 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION ......................................................................................... 147 BIBLIOGRAPHY ..................................................................................................................... 155 PRIMARY SOURCES .................................................................................................................. 155 SECONDARY SOURCES ............................................................................................................. 156 APPENDIX I ............................................................................................................................. 169 LIST OF THE EXISTING SAUDI WRITTEN LAWS .......................................................... 169 APPENDIX II ............................................................................................................................ 179 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE BOOKS INCLUDED IN RESOLUTION OF 1928 ................................. 179 VITA .......................................................................................................................................... 181 iv List of Figures Figure 1: Allocation of Interviewed Sample 32 Figure 2: Codification Argument in Saudi Arabia 70 Figure 3: Ijtihad in Judge 81 Figure 4: Supporting Codification of Sharī‘a 89 Figure 5: Supporting Codification of Sharī‘a Combined with Legal Education 89 Figure 6: Dr. al-Nafisa's Proposal