The Sharia Inquiry Findings: Brief Overview

The independent review into Sharia Law in England and Wales was tasked to examine the practice of Islamic law in England and Wales with a specific focus on the potential mis-abuse of Sharia Councils in their position as alternative dispute resolution fora within Muslim communities.

Sharia Councils, women’s rights groups, academics and lawyers and other key stakeholders. A Sharia Council was defined as ‘a voluntary local association of scholars who see themselves or are seen by their communities as authorised to offer advice to Muslims principally in the field of religious marriage and divorce’.

Key findings included: (i) the primary users of Sharia Councils are women; (ii) the primary motivation was due to the fact that Muslim couples do not register their marriages and therefore some Muslim women have no option of obtaining a civil divorce; (iii) evidence of good and bad practice was found. The panel put forward a set of rec­ommendations including changing the marriage laws in England and Wales to ensure Muslim marriages fall under the remit of registered marriages. Further an awareness campaign was conducted within Muslim communities to educate and inform women of their rights under English law. There was also a partial call of regulation to Sha­ria Councils but this was not supported by all panel members and the regulation comprised a state-mandated self-regulatory body.