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Fatwa CenterLiability of employee or co-partner in case of loss
Question
BISMILLAAHI RAHMANI RAHIM As salaam aleikum, Dear Sheikh, I am working for a muslim brother and he has given me all responsibility to manage his business that deals with spare parts. Recently the business started to drop and the best solution was to sell the products in a wholesale prices. We got a muslim brother as a salesman since he was good in this field and we agreed to pay him in commission. He managed to get some customers but we discovered that he had fraudently stole our goods and money and he is no where to be seen. Am i going to be responsible since i just wanted to do my job in sincerity?, am i going to return what the salesman stole? is it part of Qadar? Hadha WabilLaahi Tawfiq.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.
In this kind of transaction, the questioner can only be one of two people, either an employee or a co-partner.
In any case, an employee and a co-partner are not liable unless one deliberately caused the problem that led to this loss or was negligent.
As regards whether or not what happened has been predestined, then the answer is yes. Allaah Says (what means): {No disaster befalls on the earth nor among yourselves, but it is in a book before We bring it into existence.}[Quran 57:22]. Allaah further Says (what means): {Indeed, all things We created with predestination.}[Quran 54:49]. Furthermore, the Prophet 
said: "…and to believe in the predestination whether it is good or bad." [Muslim] However, predestination does not exempt one from the liability if he is responsible for a crime and the like. If an employee does something wrong deliberately, is negligent, or takes people's rights unjustly, and the like, then he is liable for people's wealth and belongings with which he was entrusted.
If every person who does a crime or takes people's rights claims that this happened because it is something that was predestined, then the whole world will become corrupted and anarchy will be widespread.
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