Message From The Chairman
The Art of the legal Profession from the Justice Prospective.
Introduction:
Unlike other professions, the legal profession is a sublime art. It is one of the most dignified and noble professions ever. ItÔÇÖs a means to reveal the truth, achieve justice, and lead to prosperity in life. Since the legal profession is an art, it requires talent.
This talent consists of several faculties and principles that are inherent in the lawyerÔÇÖs soul and characterize his/her charisma. A lawyer can be a shining star if endowed with religion, good manners, knowledge, and experience.
It goes without saying that good manners are the basis of success in life and a means for achieving goals. According to the saying of Prophet Muhammad r"I was sent to perfect good manners".
Good manners are based on belief, honesty, decency, uprightness, humbleness, self-restraint, tolerance, patience, faithfulness, courage of speech and sacrifice.
The Sharia Basics for the Legal Profession
If we want to know the basics of the sharia for the legal profession, we will find that Prophet Muhammad was the first legislator of this profession. The Prophet pronounced ÔÇ£Whoever walks with one who has been wronged until he establishes his rights, Allah will make his feet firm on the Siraat on the Day when feet slip.ÔÇØ Narrated by Ibn AbiÔÇÖl-Dunya and classed as hasan by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Targheeb; this hadith is evidence of the permissibility of working as a lawyer to defend those who have been wronged, as it emphasizes that the reward of those who defend the wronged is great.
So, the mission of the lawyer is so great as it aims at reaching reality and justice, rejecting the seduction of money and helping the courts to consolidate right.
Ethics of lawyer:
The lawyer must support those who have been wronged, whether they are poor or rich. He/she must be a sincere adviser and wise leader to settle disputes in a respectable manner and according to the provisions of law. He/she must not to be a tool at the hands of his/her client for injustice and wronging others. This is what Allah (glory be to Him) ordered us to do as Allah says to His Prophet in the Holy Quran ÔÇ£so be not a pleader for the treacherousÔÇØ. Therefore, the lawyer must put an end to injustice and establish the right. Otherwise, his/her work will be deemed as a failure, even if achieved unjust success as God's mill grinds slow but sure.
The lawyer is the first judge for the case, as he/she studies it and evaluates the evidence. If the lawyer finds that the right is with the claimant, he/she will undertake a strong defense by arming his/her self with the good manners that characterize the fighter who faces his opponents fairly; avoiding malicious and inferior methods to achieve victory over opponents.
In the battle of defending the right, the lawyer must be a fierce fighter in the fullest sense of the word. He/she must not finish off his/her opponent in the case of the opponentÔÇÖs surrender or a loss of some of the evidence that establishes the opponentÔÇÖs right. If the lawyer exploited the situation and obtained a favorable ruling from the judge, then he/she did something wrong, as Umm Salama reported Allah's Messenger said: ÔÇ£You bring to me, for (judgment) your disputes, some of you perhaps being more eloquent in their plea than others, so I give judgment on their behalf according to what I hear from them. (Bear in mind, in my judgment) if I slice off anything for him from the right of his brother, he should not accept that, for I sliced off for him a portion from the Hell.
Some lawyers think that if they do not defer to their clients even if these clients are wrong, the clients may seek the services of another lawyer. These lawyers prefer collecting the case fees while turning a blind eye to the oath they took to serve and support justice, and disregard that subsistence comes from Allah who says ÔÇ£In heavens is your provisionÔÇØ. Moreover, Allah (Glory be to Him) says: ÔÇ£And whosoever fears Allah, Allah will create for him a way out. And will provide for him from where he didn't expectÔÇØ and that the Prophet said ÔÇ£truthfulness is a way of salvationÔÇØ.
The lawyer can convince the guilty person to refrain from wrongdoing and to seek the path of reconciliation and tolerance. He/she must cope with his/her client by speaking the truth and not arguing falsely. If the lawyer lost the case, he/she will not lose his/her reputation from the justice prospective, and will not lose his/her religion and life. He/she must always remember AllahÔÇÖs saying: ÔÇ£Ho! ye are they who pleaded for them in the life of the world. But who will plead with Allah for them on the Day of Resurrection, or who will then be their defender?
In practice, I handled many cases like the following scenario: a man was accused of breaching trust and was prosecuted. He denied the accusation before the court. When the court set the defense session, it was found from the case documents that he was guilty. I summoned the accused and offered him the option of confessing his wrongdoing, whereupon our law firm will reimburse his legal fees. Otherwise, the accusedÔÇÖs case will be abandoned by our law firm.
The accused person chose to confess his wrongdoing, and asked for the assistance at court to commutate the penalty; stating that he is ready to remedy the damages. During the defense session, I approached the jury box and commenced my pleading. I took the judge by surprise; announcing that the accused confesses his crime and prays for Allah to open his doors for repentance. The accused also requested that the court open a door of mercy for him and commutate the punishment, as he had admitted the charge levied against him. He regrets his wrongdoing and will not repeat it again. Suddenly, the JudgeÔÇÖs facial features softened and he asked me to reach a settlement with the accused man. The session was adjourned for settlement. Therefore, truthfulness is the path to salvation.
Another practical example is the case of a foreign woman convicted of participating in a criminal felony of kidnapping, rape, and incitement to debauchery and theft. She was imprisoned for nearly eight months although she was innocent of these charges. But the evidence against her was due to procedural errors and errors in translating her words (as she does not speak Arabic), which worsened her position before the court. The prosecution and the court of the competent jurisdiction refused to release her until being acquitted. Ample evidence supported her case and unveiled the truth in accord with what was said by the Prophet ÔÇ£truthfulness is a way of salvationÔÇØ.
Finally, we ask Allah (glory be to Him) to grant our colleagues success, show us the right path and make us advocates for truth, and to make truth our ally.
Lawyer
Mohammad Al Saadi
