Jurisprudential-Legal Analysis of the Virgin, Mature Girl Being the Master of Her Own Affairs in the Lack of Need for the Father's Permission in Marriage

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Seyed mohammad hashim Pourmola ¹

Jafar Zibaeenejad ¹

Sajjad Shahbazi Ahmadi ²

¹ Department of Jurisprudence and Islamic law, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

² Department of Jurisprudence and Islamic law, Faculty of Theology and Islamic Studies, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.

10.22067/jfiqh.2026.97283.2133

Abstract

In accordance with the Civil Code, the marriage of a virgin, mature girl is conditioned upon the consent of her guardian, and in cases where such consent is unjustifiably withheld, judicial authorization is required. Within Imami jurisprudence, divergent scholarly opinions have been advanced, grounded in general and specific textual evidences and shaped by differing methodological approaches to the authentication of hadiths.

Certain hadiths describe women as malikat li-amriha (owners of their own affairs), signifying financial independence and active participation in social and economic transactions. This raises the jurisprudential question of whether such autonomy affects the necessity of paternal consent in marriage.

Employing a descriptive-analytical method, this study demonstrates that reliable hadiths explicitly identify malikat li-amriha as the rationale for waiving paternal permission in the marriage of a virgin, mature girl. Conversely, paternal consent remains obligatory for those who are not “owners of their own affairs,” i.e., daughters living under paternal guardianship, due to their lack of sufficient social competence in making independent life decisions, which may result in social harms. This conclusion is consistent with the Civil Code, and by way of specification, may be incorporated by the legislator without contradiction

Keywords

Marriage (Nikāḥ)

Ownership of Affairs (Malik al-Amr)

Virgin

Mature Girl (Bikr Rashīdah)

Guardian’s Consent (Idhn al-Walī)

Subjects

• Jurisprudence and family law

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