Court auctions and traders colluding on the price

A question about court-ordered auctions and traders and would-be buyers colluding on a set price, in which Jordan's General Iftaa Department answered that auction sales are permitted, and that a judge may sell a debtor's property to repay his creditors provided the sale achieves the price most beneficial to the owner and is free of collusion on the price. ¹

The questioner asked about the legal ruling on court auction sales, and on traders and those wishing to buy colluding on a particular price. ¹

The Department answered that auction sales are permitted, citing the hadith of Anas ibn Malik, reported by Abu Dawud, in which the Prophet offered a man of the Ansar's belongings asking who would bid more than a dirham. ¹ It said a judge may sell the property of a debtor or a bankrupt to repay his creditors, provided the sale is the most beneficial and advantageous for the owner and is free of collusion between traders and would-be buyers on a set price. ¹ It quoted al-Khatib al-Shirbini in Mughni al-Muhtaj that it is recommended to sell in the presence of the bankrupt and his creditors, to dispel suspicion, and in the goods' own market, publicising sales of real estate, and that the sale must be at the market price or more, since dealing on another's behalf requires regard for his interest. ¹ It said that what takes place in today's courts is left to the judge's assessment to secure the litigants' interests, and concluded that public auction is unobjectionable provided it achieves the price most beneficial and advantageous for the owner. ¹

Jordan's General Iftaa Department published this fatwa on aliftaa.jo as no. 3999, dated 28 August 2025. ¹ The museum records this text as a historical document attributed to the body or scholar that issued it; it issues no ruling of its own.