A man who informs his wife of a divorce, then takes her back without informing her until she marries

Al-Hakam (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Abu Kanaf divorced his wife without informing her, and then took witnesses to his taking her back. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: "If you reach her before she marries, then you have the right to her."

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said: If a man divorces his wife and then takes witnesses to his taking her back, she is his wife, whether he informs her or not.

Umayr bin Yazid (may Allah have mercy on him) said: I was sitting with Shurayh (may Allah have mercy on him) when a man came bringing a dispute with his wife. The woman said: "He divorced me but did not tell me of his taking me back until my waiting period had passed, and I married, and my husband consummated the marriage with me." Shurayh (may Allah have mercy on him) said to the man: "Why did you not tell her of taking her back just as you told her of the divorce?" Then he did not return the woman to him.

Jabir bin Zayd said: If a man divorces his wife and does not inform her that he has taken her back until her waiting period has passed, and she marries and the second husband consummates the marriage with her, then the first one gets nothing.

Ata (may Allah have mercy on him) said: A man divorced his wife and then took her back, but kept the taking back hidden until her waiting period had passed. If he reaches her before she marries, she is his wife; and if she has married, his taking her back has been lost.

Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Abu Kanaf (may Allah have mercy on him) divorced his wife and then went on a journey, and took his wife back. He also wrote a letter to her about it and took witnesses to the taking back. The letter did not reach the woman, and when her waiting period was completed she married. Abu Kanaf (may Allah have mercy on him) came to Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and related the whole matter. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "You have the greater right to this woman as long as he (the second husband) has not consummated the marriage with her."

Sayyiduna Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) used to say: In this case the first husband has more right to her, whether the second one has consummated the marriage or not.

This was also the view of Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him).

Al-Hakam bin Utaybah (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Abu Kanaf divorced his wife and then took her back, but he did not inform her of taking her back. Then his wife married. Abu Kanaf asked Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) about this. Sayyiduna Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said to him: Go back to your wife, and if her husband has not gone near her, then she is your wife. He went and found that her husband had not yet gone near her. So Abu Kanaf took his wife back.

Sa'id bin al-Musayyib (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If a man divorced his wife and then sent her a message that he was taking her back, but she had already married before the message of taking her back reached her, then she becomes irrevocably separated (ba'inah) from him; and if the message of taking her back reached her before she married, she remains his wife.

Jabir bin Zayd said: Taking back (one's wife) in one's heart has no legal standing.