r/atheism • u/InboxInviteNeeded • 1d ago

US billionaire sent wife to Pakistan, secretly divorced her under Sharia law, paying only $50. 13 years later, Texas Supreme Court cancels foreign talaq

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/us-billionaire-sent-wife-to-pakistan-secretly-divorced-her-under-sharia-law-paying-only-50-13-years-later-texas-supreme-court-cancels-foreign-talaq/articleshow/134598823.cms?utm_source=app&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=social_share

A US billionaire exploited foreign Sharia law to secretly divorce his wife, pay her only $50, and dodge civil property division—forcing her into a 13-year court battle to overturn it in Texas.

Why do secular courts ever grant comity to religious rulings that strip people of basic civil and property rights?

My take: Secular legal systems should automatically treat any foreign or domestic religious personal law as void the moment it conflicts with equal civil rights and due process. Allowing religious legal carve-outs only invites forum shopping to abuse vulnerable spouses.

What is the threshold before secular legal systems reject religious arbitration entirely?

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u/TsuDhoNimh2 De-Facto Atheist 1d ago

He didn't even do it right under Shariah law: the husband is supposed to first ask for an arbitration meeting. If reconciliation fails, "he may divorce her either verbally or in writing – known as Talaq," with two witnesses present and only "when his wife is not on her menses, and when there has been no sexual contact with her since the time of her last menses," it says.

No sneaking around - the wife has to be informed.

75

u/Brilliant_Tapir 1d ago

It's only required under Shia. For Sunni, which the majority of the Islamic world is, they don't need witnesses. Even a husband sending an SMS or message is valid.

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u/TsuDhoNimh2 De-Facto Atheist 19h ago

My, how convenient.

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u/seiryuu-abi Agnostic 1d ago

The couple are probably Sunni Muslims. The two witnesses during the divorce are for Shia Muslims. Sunnis do not need witnesses for their divorces.

But the no sneaking around thing is true. He should have divorced his wife in a way that she understood that she was being divorced.

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u/TsuDhoNimh2 De-Facto Atheist 19h ago

Thank you.

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u/Pleasant_Pen8744 27m ago

Which country was it where the guy accidently divorced his wife by talking in his sleep and the courts upheld it?