Question
If a husband pronounces a conditional divorce (ta‘liq) to his wife by saying something like: “If you leave the house without my permission, then a divorce will occur,” and then the wife does indeed leave the house without his permission, thus causing the divorce to take effect. If the husband and wife then reconcile (ruju’) during the ‘iddah period, is the ta‘liq still valid after the reconciliation?
Answer
According to the Syafi‘i madhhab, a conditional divorce (ta‘liq) only takes effect the first time the condition is fulfilled. If the couple reconciles during the ‘iddah period and the same condition is fulfilled again, it does not result in a second divorce.
However, if the husband had included wording in the ta‘liq that implies repetition such as “every time you leave…” then a divorce would occur each time the condition is fulfilled, so long as the marriage remains valid.
Explanation
A ta‘liq is a form of conditional divorce whereby the husband suspends the occurrence of divorce upon the fulfillment of a condition, whether that condition is a behaviour, action or situation involving the wife or another party.
In reference to the question, a ta‘liq divorce takes effect only once, the first time the condition is met. If the couple reconciles during the ‘iddah, the previous ta‘liq is no longer effective. This is based on the following legal principle:
الْأَدَوَاتُ الْمَذْكُورَةُ (لَا) تَقْتَضِي أَيْضًا بِالْوَضْعِ (تَكْرَارًا) فِي الْمُعَلَّقِ عَلَيْهِ، بَلْ إذَا وُجِدَ مَرَّةً وَاحِدَةً فِي غَيْرِ نِسْيَانٍ وَلَا إكْرَاهٍ انْحَلَّتْ الْيَمِينُ وَلَمْ يُؤَثِّرْ وُجُودُهَا ثَانِيًا
Meaning: “The conditional particles (such as ‘if’, ‘when’) do not inherently imply repetition. Rather, if the condition is fulfilled once without forgetfulness or coercion then the condition is resolved, and its reoccurrence later does not trigger the effect again.”
(Mughni al-Muhtaj, 4/509)
However, if the husband explicitly includes a phrase that implies repetition such as “every time” or “whenever” then the divorce will be triggered each time the specified act occurs, as long as the marriage contract is still valid.