‘Transformative Accommodation’: Towards the Convergence of Sharīʿah and Common Law in Muslim Minority Jurisdictions

Abstract

In spite of the increasingly globalized nature of the modern world and the surge in cross-civilizational intercourse among peoples of different backgrounds, cultures and ideologies, there is still the spectre of mutual suspicion in some Muslim minority jurisdictions where Muslims have sought to conduct their affairs in accordance with the Sharīʿah. In order to promote peaceful co-existence and mutual understanding, this article examines the prospects of convergence of Sharīʿah and Common law in Muslim communities in Western countries based on the concept of transformative accommodation. The study concludes that the long historical revelations of the Islamic origins of some important Common law concepts should pave a way for transformative accommodation which will ultimately lead to convergence of laws.