
In these cases, the woman has an inalienable right which allows her to negotiate more effectively on the real issues of concern between herself and her husband with the support of Imams and religious counsellors. From the research that we have engaged in, most Muslim women are unaware of this right that was established by the Prophet s.a.w. when he gave specific conditions to his future son-in-law Ali r.a. that Ali was not to marry again while he was still married to Fatima r.a. Many in the Muslim community currently associate pre-nuptial agreements with the settlement of assets and property (and often children) following a divorce and therefore see pre-nups as a negative approach to beginning a marriage.
In fact pre-nups can include many aspects of the future relationship which, if sorted out and agreed upon prior to marriage, can often reduce potential disagreements and conflicts on how the marriage will operate, right from the beginning.