2375. Kif¡lah is defined as the act of offering a guarantee by an individual to a creditor, that whenever the creditor seeks the debtor, the individual will submit the debtor to him. An individual who offers such a guarantee is known as a kafil (a guarantor).
2376. A kif¡lah will only be in order if the guarantor conveys by means of any words—even if they are not in Arabic—or actions that he is offering to guarantee (the creditor) that whenever ‘you wish to summon your debtor, I will present him to you,’ and the creditor or his guardian accepts.
2377. The guarantor must be a sane and b¡ligh person. He must not be feeble-minded, or bankrupt in the event that it necessitates that he stand surety for a property, unless it is carried out with the permission of the guardian of the feeble-minded person or the creditors of the bankrupt individual. The guarantor should also not be wrongfully compelled to the act of kif¡lah, and should be capable of summoning the debtor.
2378. One of the following five occurrences can void the kif¡lah:
1. The guarantor submits the debtor to the creditor, or the debtor submits himself, or another individual submits him and the creditor accepts it.
2. The debt owed to the creditor is paid.
3. The creditor forgives the debt, or transfers it to another party through a sale, a settlement compromise, a transfer of liabilities or any similar agreement.
4. The debtor dies.
5. The creditor frees the guarantor from the kif¡lah.
2379. If a person forcefully or deceitfully frees a debtor from the hands of a creditor, then given that the creditor is no longer able to get hold of the debtor, the person who freed the debtor will have to submit him to the creditor. If he fails to do so, he will have to pay his debts.
