Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If the meaning of the statement of Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) is that in the time of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) three divorces were counted as one, meaning by the command of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), then it is possible that Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) knew that something had abrogated it. How could Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrate something from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and then oppose it with something he did not know from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), and in which there was disagreement?
The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Ikrimah narrates from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that abrogation has occurred in this.
Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: If it is said that Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) agreed with the statement of Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), we will say that Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) differed with Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) on temporary marriage (mut'ah), on selling one dinar for two dinars, and on selling umm walads (slave women who bore their masters' children); how would he agree with him in something in which there was disagreement? If it is said that the time of Abu Bakr and the first two years of Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) have been mentioned, he says: Allah knows best, since when he was asked for a fatwa he answered contrary to that, as I have described.
Imam al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Perhaps Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) said that three are equal to one. Since Allah, the Lord of Might, has left the number of divorces to the husband, to divorce whenever he wishes, one and three are equal, and so is more than three. The Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) said: By the triple divorce he may have meant the battah divorce. This is the view of some people.
Hadith Referenceالسنن الكبرى للبيهقي / كتاب الخلع والطلاق / 14983