Recovering a Child’s Past Expenses from the Husband, and the Right of Custody (Hadana)

Question

Question: A woman has her son with her, who is a quarter short of five years old (four years and nine months). Can she, according to the Shari‘a, recover from her husband the boy’s expenses for two years and nine months — since she has been sitting in her parents’ home — or not? And can she, according to the Shari‘a, also take in the future, after the annulment (faskh) of the nikah, the expenses for two years and three months — until the age of seven — or not?

Answer

She cannot recover past maintenance (nafaqa). But if an agreement had been made between the spouses that whatever the wife spends she would recover from the husband, then in that case recovering it according to the agreement is valid. Future maintenance is the husband’s responsibility: he may either spend it himself, or make someone his agent (wakil)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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