Discover the meaning of the term Al-mdʿy (مدعي) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 2 min readOne who cannot be compelled to litigate.
The agent noun of 'idda'a': when he abandons his claim, he abandons it, that is, he is not compelled to litigate when he leaves it, because the right of demanding belongs to him; if he leaves it, nothing can be imposed upon him. The patient noun is the one claimed against by a man, who then demands proof against him; hence he is called 'matlub' (the demanded). The claimant (al-mudda'i), the demanded (al-matlub), and the outcome are one and the same in reality, distinguished only by consideration.
One whose word appears to the contrary; and the defendant (al-mad'i 'alayhi) is its opposite. It is said: the claimant is one who cannot be compelled to litigate, and the defendant the one who can be so compelled.
An agent noun derived from 'idda'a'. In the law's usage: one who demands by his claim a thing that is not his, and whose hand has not been established upon it. (Al-Husayn al-San'ani).
Among the Hanafis, Hanbalis, and Ja'faris: one who, if he abandons his claim, abandons it, because the right of demanding belongs to him; if he leaves it, nothing can be imposed upon him.