Business and Dealings

Q: Offering or accepting bribe is indeed forbidden in Islam. However there are times when one is really helpless and cannot gain one's right or avoid being subject to to injustice except through bribery. This question is on behalf of my friend. "I am running an export oriented industry for which water is most essential. My water flow meter's visibility has become quite dull for which I approached the concerned authorities to allow permission to me for purchase of new meter as I fear that the current meter reading is also not clearly visible. I have been asked to send this meter for testing which I have done but the officials demand bribe for giving the permission to me to purchase new water flow meter which is my right. Delays will put me to great losses in my business. My question is that under the above circumstances if I fulfil their unjust demands would I be committing the major sin and face Allah's Wrath?"

Q: Am I allowed to keep the soap, etc that I have taken from the hotel room in which I was staying. If no and it's not possible for me to return the item. What do I do?

Q: I have formed a company of programmers and developers to develop mobile games and applications. There are three sources of revenue:

1. Sell the game.

2. Make it free and gain revenue from advertisements in the applications and games.

3. Keep it partly free and partly under sale (in app purchases).

I have ensured that my apps and games will not contain anything vulgar or shameless. However, they will contain music. Is this permissible?

Q: My apartment complex offers an incentive to pay rent one week earlier than the due date. The apartment complex holds a raffle with the names of all the people who pay their rent early and the winner of the raffle gets $400 in cash. Last month, I paid my rent early and my name was drawn in the raffle, so they gave me $400. Is this money halaal for me to use?

Q: A took an item of B. A lost B's item and A wants to pay for the item. Can B make a profit when taking the money for the item? If yes then does A have to know about it.

Q: Two shareholders in a company came to an agreement to buy each other’s share in the company at the death of either one of the shareholders at an agreed price. This is to ensure the future of the company and also to guarantee a purchase price and a buyer for the shares. Funding of the purchase is by means of life assurance by the shareholders on each other’s lives. Both shareholders are Muslim and their wills are Shariah compliant. Is the buy and sell agreement between the two shareholders acceptable within the Shariah principles?

Q: May a Muslim become a US marine?

Q: There is a custom in some communities, that is; when we give some prepared food to our neighbor or somebody they always give back something which they prepared, in the same plate in return. The problem is, when nothing is found in their home they refuse to return our plate empty and say that, "I will give later"because of custom. Is this an act of sunnah to give back something as hadya in the same plate when one receives hadya from a neighbor or someone else?

Q: In some places when an aalim does a bayan, the people and masjid committee collect money and give it to the aalim as hadya. Is it permissible for him to receive that amount because it is his duty to educate people islamically?

Q: A friend of ours is unemployed and dependent financially on the government but is actively looking for work. He has a mother who repeatedly tells him that she will buy him a house, which gives him hope because he can live on the rental yields and not be in fear of eviction while he continues to search for a job. He will also be in a better position to transfer his mother's house to his name so as to avoid inheritance tax. The problem is that her wealth is very dubious and most likely gained in a haram way. For some time now she has been receiving benefits from the government but recently she has also been renting out rooms in her house. How she amassed her wealth is another story and cannot be explained by the benefits she receives but from what things she did (and probably still does) like take interest from the banks, working in betting  establishments, and committing refund fraud. My questions are:

1. Can he receive a gift from his mother?
2. Can he inherit from her?