Is It Permissible for a Woman To Work as a Lawyer When She Has Male Clients and May Have To Be Alone With a Man in an Office?

Question: Can I work as a woman as a lawyer? Is it a problem if a woman works with men? As a lawyer, I will also have male clients and have to be alone with them in my room at work. Is it in Islam allowed?

Answer:

Assalamu alaykum,

Thank you for your question. May Allah reward you for your concern about your religion and your sincerity.

It is permissible for a woman to work as a lawyer even if she has male clients. However, she must still follow the rules of seclusion (khalwa) regarding gender interaction and not neglect her duties at home if she is married. Please see the details here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWhCd676peA
https://seekers.flywheelstaging.com/tag/wife-working/
https://seekers.flywheelstaging.com/answers/general-counsel/is-it-permissible-to-work-for-a-women-who-doesnt-actually-need-it/

Also, see the rules of gender interaction and follow them to have blessings in your job and circumstances.
https://seekers.flywheelstaging.com/answers/general-counsel/a-reader-on-gender-interaction/

May Allah give you the best of this world and the next.
[Ustadha] Shazia Ahmad

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadha Shazia Ahmad lived in Damascus, Syria, for two years, where she studied aqidah, fiqh, tajweed, Tafseer, and Arabic. She then attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she completed her Master’s in Arabic. Afterward, she moved to Amman, Jordan, where she studied fiqh, Arabic, and other sciences. She recently moved back to Mississauga, Canada, where she lives with her family.