| Concept |
Islamic Societies |
Western Societies (U.S. Justice System as an Example) |
| Foundation of the law |
Islam and its principles serve as the platform for jurisprudence and legislation |
Democratic principles denying the dominance of any religious principles define the choice of the legal standards and practices |
| Role of the key legal figures |
- The mufti performs the function of an implementer of the existing Islamic regulations;
- The mufti plays the role of the man who implements the qiyas (legal standards)
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- The judge serves as the person that enforces the law and ensures that all regulations are followed;
- The judge may play the part of a fact finder in specific cases;
- The jury is the body that decides whether a defendant is guilty or not.
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| Court |
The Islamic court represents a rigid structure based on the Sharia principles |
A typical Western court represents a rigid structure based on the principles established in the state law. For instance, in the U.S. justice system, the Constitutional Law and the Amendments play an important part. |
| Court types |
- Civil courts (general and summary courts);
- Criminal courts (Hamoudi and Cammack 152)
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- Supreme courts;
- Courts of appeals;
- District courts (Ford et al. 498)
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| Punishment |
Physical punishment may ensure in specific cases; |
Typically, physical punishment is absent from the Western legal system; instead, either prison time or fine is used as a punishment (Rosen 166). |
| Social justice |
- The system of social justice is rather poorly developed’;
- Justice without practical application viewed as a utopian idea;
- Political structure affects the levels of and changes within social justice (Hamoudi and Cammack 89).
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- The system of social justice is highly developed;
- High levels of social activism among western citizens are observed;
- Social justice affects the use of laws in court cases to a certain extent (Ford et al. 129)
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| Political structure |
- The social justice framework can contribute to the development of a specific type of society;
- The existing political structure has a direct and meaningful effect on the enactment and implementation of the legal principles and functioning of the legal system;
- The unity of the human race is deemed as the foundation for any decision made in the context of the legal system (Hamoudi and Cammack 699)
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- The social justice standards are defined by the society in which they are produced, and this effect is rarely reciprocal;
- The existing political structure has few to none effect on the implementation and quality of the legal system within the state;
- The decisions made in the realm of the legal system are justified by legal standards and a system of ethical beliefs (Ford et al. 318).
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| Criticism and the focus thereof |
In the Islamic justice system and especially the social justice framework, the principles of secularism are typically targeted. |
In the western philosophy, the ideas of Utilitarianism are deemed an ethically questionable from the perspective of the legal system; |
| Freedom and responsibility |
Freedom and responsibility are defined by the principles of the Sharia; |
The postulates of liberty and responsibility are defined by the existing democratic principles; |
| Rationality from the perspective of the legal system |
- Rationality as the embodiment of the divine command that guides the decision-making in the legal system of Islam;
- Liberty as a psychological notion that is linked directly to the spiritual development of an individual.
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- Rationality as a variation of common sense and a self-explanatory string of reasoning;
- Social liberty as the focus of the rational analysis and a foundational principle of the legal system (Ford et al. 321).
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| Equality as the cornerstone of the contemporary justice system |
Equality playing the second part in the context of the Islam legal standards compared to the notion of liberty |
Equality regarded as a critical component of the social justice philosophy; |
| Supporter of justice |
The social principles and the well-being of the general audience is regarded as the supporter of justice |
The Individualist ideas serve as the key supporter of justice and the relevant regulations; |
| Social order |
Social order is viewed as the direct effect of the realization of justice. |
Social order is regarded as the implication of an individual’s decision-making and the choices made by them. |
| List of social minimum |
Human instincts serve as the foundation for the implementation of the social minimum justice. |
The original position concerning the concept is supported. |
| Concept of the human civilization |
- Is interpreted as the outcome of God’s will being implemented by people;
- Deductive principles making the core of the understanding of how the human civilization works.
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- Is seen as the product of individuals’ work;
- Inducting reasoning determining the results of the analysis of how the human civilization has been affected by the choices of specific people.
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| Public issues |
- Instances of civil disobedience as the focus of the public justice;
- The process is entirely open for everyone to observe;
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- Civil disobedience cases being tried in court;
- The court sessions are only available for the jury and other members of the court to see (Ford et al. 121).
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| Abiding the law |
- Fidelity to the law is regarded as the intrinsic moral system of belief that defines the morality of the community;
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- Fidelity to the law is seen as a crucial requirement for any citizen, yet the nature of the subject matter is not regarded as intrinsic to the human nature.
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