Updated 11/21/2019 By Prof. Gabriel Sawma INTRODUCTION Qatar, Arabic قطر is a small Arab state, situated in both the northern and eastern hemispheres and is located in the Middle East or South West Asia. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its territory surrounded by the Persian […]

Updated 11/21/2019 By Prof. Gabriel Sawma   Married Muslim Iraqi men, with U.S. citizenship, travel to Iraq, obtain a divorce decree from a court of Personal Status and come back to the United States seeking recognition of their Islamic divorce in a state court. This article deals with the legal ramifications of such a divorce […]

Updated 11/21/2019 By Professor Gabriel Sawma When a divorced male immigrant from Yemen remarries in the United States, immigration authorities may conduct more than the usual scrutiny to see that the divorce in Yemen has been done legally in that country. Divorce in Yemen and remarriage in the United States is often looked upon as […]

Updated 11/21/2019 By Professor Gabriel Sawma 1-Introduction The political history of Palestine, including the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, has produced a particular set of laws and jurisdictions since the beginning of the twentieth century. Until World War I, laws in Palestine were passed and courts established by the Ottoman Empire authorities, then […]

Updated 11/21/2019 By Prof. Gabriel Sawma Chronology The family laws for the Muslim community in Egypt are not codified in one law; they are scattered among different laws.  Islamic law, however, remained the most important element to family law. The law of Qadri Basha from the 19th century, which was based on the Hanafi School […]

Updated 11/21/2019 Egyptian Divorce and U.S. Immigration By  Prof. Gabriel Sawma In Egypt, a Muslim husband can end his marriage unilaterally by a simple willful declaration made before the civil state office (ma’dhun) without the need to justify his decision, nor prove the existence of a valid reason. Article 3 of Decree-Law No. 25/1929 states […]

Updated 11/21/2019 Saudi Divorce in USA By Prof. Gabriel Sawma    Introduction The modern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was founded in 1932 by King Abdul-Aziz Al Saud. It earns its position as the location of the holiest shrines in Islam, Mecca and Medina. This status is significant for the preservation of Islamic heritage. Muslims from […]

Updated 11/21/2019 Saudi Divorce and U.S. Immigration By Prof. Gabriel Sawma Introduction Saudi Arabia is a Kingdom established in 1932 by King Abdul-Aziz. It is the only country among Muslim nations whose constitution is the Qur’an and the Sunnah, and whose source of legislation is Islamic Shari’a which constitutes the Qur’an, the Sunnah, Ijma’ and […]

Updated 11/21/2019 SAUDI ARABIAN CHILD CUSTODY CASES IN U.S. COURTS By Prof. Gabriel Sawma This article is written to address the issue of recognizing, by U.S. courts, divorce decrees obtained from Saudi Arabia involving custody of children. In most cases, a client needs a lawyer immediately; he or she returns to the first lawyer they […]

Updated 11/21/2019 By Professor Gabriel Sawma   Citizens from Pakistan divorce their spouses and come to the United States seeking U.S. citizenship. They present their divorce decrees to the Immigration offices. But can these decrees be recognized by the immigration authorities? In a recent case, I was asked to testify as Expert Consultant on Islamic […]