Khaled Abou El Fadl is one of the leading authorities in Islamic law in the United States and Europe. He was named as a 2005 Carnegie Scholar in Islamic studies. His personal library contains over 6500 Islamic books and manuscripts, some dating from the thirteenth century. He teaches Islamic law, Middle Eastern Investment Law, Immigration Law, and courses related to human rights and terrorism. He works with various human rights organizations, such as Human Rights Watch and the Lawyer’s Committee for Human Rights. He often serves as an expert witness in international litigation involving Middle Eastern law, and in cases involving immigration law and political asylum claims.
Professor Abou El Fadl was trained in Islamic legal sciences in Egypt, Kuwait, and the United States. After law school, he clerked for Arizona Supreme Court Justice J. Moeller. While in graduate school, he also practiced immigration and investment law in the United States and the Middle East. He previously has taught at the University of Texas at Austin, Yale Law School, and Princeton University. He is an avid fan of the Egyptian diva Umm Kulthum.
Professor Abou El Fadl’s books include: Conference of the Books: The Search for Beauty in Islam (2001); Rebellion in Islamic Law (2001); Speaking in God’s Name: Islamic Law, Authority and Women (2001); and And God Knows the Soldiers: The Authoritative and Authoritarian in Islamic Discourse (2nd ed. revised and expanded, 2001).