Le Messager d'Allah ﷺ nommait les juges ; il nomma 'Ali comme juge du Yémen et lui donna des instructions sur la manière de juger en disant : « Si deux personnes en conflit viennent à toi, ne juge en faveur de l'une ou de l'autre avant d'avoir entendu ce que l'autre a à dire. » Il ﷺ nomma également 'Abdullah ibn Nawfal comme juge de Madinah.

The Messenger of Allah (saw) used to appoint the judges; he appointed ‘Ali as judge over Yemen and he gave him instructions about how to judge by saying, “If two disputing persons came to you do not judge for either of them until you have heard what the other had to say.” He (saw) also appointed ‘Abdullah ibn Nawfal as judge over Madinah.

Cependant, tous les juges n'étaient pas de même type, et les domaines sur lesquels ils exerçaient leur juridiction variaient selon les rôles qui leur étaient attribués. Certains juges s'occupaient des litiges entre les gens, d'autres du règlement de tout ce qui nuisait à l'intérêt commun des gens, et d'autres encore traitaient du domaine des litiges entre les gens et ceux qui exerçaient l'autorité sur eux.

However, all the judges were not of one type, and the areas over which they had jurisdiction varied according to the roles they were allocated. Some judges were concerned with the disputes between the people, others with settling whatever harms the common interest of the people and others dealt with the area of disputes between the people and those who were in authority over them.