Analysis of Digital Evidence Admissibility in Islamic Sharia Courts

As the landscape of human activity has significantly become of digital nature, so have the footprints of our actions, interactions, and transactions. This shift is reflected in the legal process wherein the presentation of digital evidence has multiplied and, in a lot of cases, could be indispensable. Because of the distinct nature of this modern means of proof, its collection, storage, processing, and use in court, although following the same stages as traditional evidence, is handled in a different manner. This paper explores the variation of digital evidence admissibility in Sharia courts in various Islamic countries. This is conducted through the examination of civil cases where digital evidence is involved. This study gives an overview of the Sharia law, its primary and secondary sources of law, Islamic criminal jurisprudence, and Islamic evidence law. Furthermore, a rundown of digital forensics and its role in the legal process is presented. The overview in these areas and where they overarch provides a baseline in looking at digital evidence admissibility under the Sharia law through the examination of four civil and criminal cases in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. The study found that no digital forensic investigator was employed by the Shariah court in all examined cases. Instead, it was upon the prerogative of the judge to decide the admissibility of the presented digital evidence.