Mustafti ba muqallidi ba ne, domin muqallidi shi ne wanda ya karɓi hukuncin Shari'a ya kuma aikata shi. Amma mustafti shi ne wanda yake koyon hukmin Shar'i daga wanda ya san wannan hukunci, ko wannan mutum mujtahidi ne ko ba mujtahidi ba, kuma ko mustaftin ya koye shi don ya aikata shi ko kuwa kawai don ilimi. Mustafti duk wanda yake neman sanin hukuncin Allah game da wata mas'ala. Saboda haka duk wanda ba mujtahidi ba ne game da wani hukunci, to shi mai neman fatawa ne game da wannan hukunci. Don haka wanda ba mujtahidi ba ne a kowace mas'ala, to shi mustafti ne a dukkan mas'aloli. Wanda yake mujtahidi a wasu mas'aloli, to shi mustafti ne a cikin mas'alolin da bai yi ijtihadi a kansu ba. Amma wanda yake bayyana hukuncin Allah ga mustafti, to shi ne mufti. Ana cewa a harshen Larabci:

The one who seeks a legal verdict (mustafti) is not a muqallid, because the muqallid is one who adopts the Sharī’ah rule and acts upon it. As for the mustafti (one who seeks a legal verdict), he is the one who learns the hukm Shar’i from a person who knows this hukm, whether that person is a mujtahid or not, and whether the mustafti learned it in order to practise it or just for the sake of knowledge. The mustafti is anyone who seeks to know the rule of Allah  pertaining to an issue. So anyone who is not a mujtahid with regard to a hukm is a seeker of a legal verdict in regard to that hukm. Thus the one who is not a mujtahid in any issue he is a mustafti (seeker of a legal verdict) in all issues. Whoever is a mujtahid in certain issues he is a mustafti in the issues he has not exercised Ijtihād in. As for the one who explains the rule of Allah  to a mustafti (seeker of a legal verdict) he is a mufti. It is said in the Arabic language:

Kuma ya nemi fatawa daga malami game da wata matsala, ma'ana ya nemi ya ba shi hukunci a kanta. Fatawoyin Sahabbai da Tabi'ai su ne hukunce-hukuncen da suka bayyana wa mutane. Kuma tun da sanin hukuncin Allah wajibi ne (fard), dole ne a sami mutane, ko mujtahidai ko ba mujtahidai ba, waɗanda za su koyar da hukunce-hukuncen Shari'a ga wasu, ko sun koyar da mutane hukuncin tare da dalilai ko ba tare da su ba. Tun da ba a sharadanta cewa wanda ke koyar da hukunce-hukunce ya zama mujtahid ba, kamar yadda ba a sharadanta wa Musulmin da ke koyar da wasu ya bayyana dalilai ba, to ana halatta wa wanda ya san wani hukunci ya koyar da shi ga wasu idan ya ƙware a kan wannan hukuncin. Haka kuma, saboda ba a sharadanta wanda ke ba mutane fatawa game da hukunce-hukuncen Shari'a ko ya koyar da su da kansa ya zama mujtahid ba, akasin haka, ana halatta wa wanda ba mujtahid ba, wanda ya san hukuncin Shari'a na wani mujtahid, ya ba da fatawa ta amfani da wannan hukuncin, domin shi mai ɗaukar hukuncin ne ko da bai bayyana haka ba. Wajen aikata wannan aiki babu bambanci tsakanin malami da waɗanda ba malamai ba, kamar yadda yake a ruwaito hadisai. Kamar yadda ba a sharadanta cewa mai ruwaito hadisi ya zama malami ba, haka ba a sharadanta wa wanda ya isar wa wasu hukuncin Shari'a ya zama malami ba. Saboda haka, ta hanyar mafi girman dalili (min bab al-awla), ba a sharadanta cewa ya zama mujtahid ba. Duk da haka, ana sharadanta cewa ya san hukuncin da yake isarwa a sarari kuma daidai, tun da ba zai iya isar da shi ga wasu ba idan bai zama daidaitacce ba kuma bai iya isar da shi yadda ya kamata. Haka kuma, ba a sharadanta wa wanda ke koyar da mutane hukuncin Shari'a ko ke ba su fatawa ya koya musu dalili ko ya isar da shi gare su ba, a maimakon haka, ana halatta masa ya takaita da isar da hukuncin Shari'a kawai ba tare da ambaton dalili ba. e, ya halatta gare shi ya bayar da fatawa da hukunci na Shari'a, kuma ya koyar da mutane shi ba tare da ya bayyana musu dalili ba. Sai dai, wajibi ne ya bayyana musu cewa abin da yake isar musu hukunci ne na Shari'a, ko kuma istinbadi (fitar da hukunci) na wani, watau na wani mujtahid. Amma idan ya isar da ra'ayi, sai ya ce musu:

And he sought a legal opinion from an ‘alim regarding an issue means he requested him to give a legal opinion about it. The legal opinions of the Sahabah and the Tabi’een are the rules they clarified to the people. And since having knowledge of Allah’s rule is a fard, there must be people, whether mujtahids or not who can teach the Sharī’ah rules to others, irrespective of whether they teach the people the rules with or without the evidences. Since it is not stipulated that the one who teaches the rules should be a mujtahid, just as it is not stipulated for the Muslim who teaches others to clarify the evidences, it is allowed for someone who knows a hukm to teach it to others when he becomes conversant about that hukm. Furthermore, because it is not stipulated for the one who gives legal opinions to people regarding the Sharī’ah rules or teaches them himself to be a mujtahid, on the contrary it is permitted for a non-mujtahid, who is acquainted with the Sharī’ah rule of a mujtahid to deliver a legal opinion using that hukm because he is a carrier of the hukm even if he does not declare about this. In performing this action there is no difference between an ‘alim and others, such as in the reporting of ahadīth. Just as it is not stipulated that the transmitter of a hadīth be an ‘alim it is not stipulated either for the one who conveys a hukm Shar’i to others to be an ‘alim. So it is by greater reason (min bab al-awla) that there should be no stipulation for him to be a mujtahid. Even though it is stipulated that he should know the hukm that he conveys in a clear and accurate manner since he cannot convey it to others if he is not precise and unable to convey it properly. Likewise, it is not stipulated for the person who teaches people the hukm Shar’i or gives them legal opinions to teach them the evidence or convey it to them, Rather it is allowed for him to limit himself just to conveying the hukm Shar’i without quoting the evidence. i.e, it is permitted for him to give fatwa with the hukm Shar’i and teach it to people without clarifying them the evidence. However, he is required to explain to them that what he transmits to them is a hukm Shar’i or the inference (istinbat) of someone else i.e, of a certain mujtahid. However if he conveys an opinion and he says to them:

Amfani da kalmar 'fasiq' (mai fasiqanci) da 'naba' (labari) a cikin sigar nakirar (sunan ma'ana) yana nuna cewa idan duk wani fasiq ya zo da wani labari, to mutane su guji karɓar abin da ya faɗa, su nemi tabbatar da lamarin, su gano gaskiyar al'amarin, kada kuma su karɓi abin da ya faɗa kawai. Ma'anar akasi (mafhum al-mukhalafa) na wannan ayar ita ce, ana karɓar maganar mutum mai adalci (ʿadl) mai riko da gaskiya, ko don bayar da hukuncin shari'a ko don neman ilimi.

The use of the word ‘fasiq’ (transgressor) and ‘naba’ (news) in their indefinite (verbal noun) forms indicate that when any fasiq (transgressor) comes with any news, the people should desist from adopting what he says and seek to verify the matter and discover the true reality and not simply accept what he says. The opposite meaning (mafhum al-mukhalafa) of this verse is that the statement of the upright and just (‘adl) person is taken whether for the purpose of giving legal opinions or acquiring knowledge.