In Islamic fiqh, fadala (or fadhala), الفضالة, refers to the act(s) of al-fodhouli (al-fuduli), i.e., a person (natural or legal) who transacts (e.g. sells, rents, etc) with someone else’s property without their proper permission. That means, al-fodhouli may purchase something on behalf of another person without being appointed or asked to do so, by way of wakala or any similar authorization, or may sell something though he is neither the actual owner of it nor the holder of disposition rights.

Fuqaha (jurists) were not in consensus over fadala contract. Malikis opined that it is valid conditional on the approval of the person whose property was involved in a fodhouli act. Otherwise, that act becomes null and void (batil). However, Hanafis distinguished between two situations: (1) al-fodhouli is acting on his own behalf. As such, the contract is valid just to that effect. (2) al-fodhouli is acting on behalf of another person. In this case, the contract validity will be pending the approval of that person. The Hanafi’s opinion gained more traction within the circles of the Islamic finance industry.

Al-fadala rules apply to all commutative contracts such as sale, purchase, or lease, and similarly to noncommutative contracts such as hiba.