the law student-powered international legal news organization, will host a webinar on October 7 exploring the philosophical foundations of rights within Islamic thought
“Rights Before ‘Rights’? Islamic Philosophy and the Philosophical Foundations of Rights” will feature AmirAli Maleki, JURIST’s Deputy Managing Editor for Global Commentary and a researcher in international law and philosophy of law. The program will take place Wednesday, October 7, 2026, from 1:00–2:00 PM ET (8:30–9:30 PM IRST).
The webinar will explore the concept of rights in Islamic philosophical thought, examining its historical and contemporary foundations and what it can contribute to broader global conversations about human rights today. The discussion will consider questions of justice, human agency, human dignity, property and ownership, obligation, political authority, and the relationship between the individual and the political community.
Rather than suggesting that classical Islamic philosophers articulated modern Western theories of individual rights, the program will examine the philosophical concepts through which questions now associated with rights were understood and debated within the Islamic philosophical tradition.
Maleki serves as JURIST’s Deputy Managing Editor for Global Commentary and is Editor of PraxisPublication.com. His research focuses on international law, philosophy of law, political philosophy, Islamic philosophy and hermeneutics. He is the recipient of JURIST’s 2026 David M. Crane Rule of Law Award.
JURIST Editorial Director Ingrid Burke Friedman will moderate the program, which will include an audience question-and-answer session.
The webinar is free and open to the public. Register here.
Founded in 1996, JURIST is an independent, non-profit legal news service powered by law students and supported by legal academics and professionals worldwide. JURIST’s mission is to provide reliable, non-partisan legal news and analysis while training the next generation of public-service-minded legal professionals.
