Ijma

he ijma' , or consensus amongst Muslim jurists on a particular legal issue, constitutes the third source of Islamic law. Muslim jurists provide many verses of the Qur'an that legitimize ijma' as a source of legislation. Muhammad himself said:
• "My followers will never agree upon an error or what is wrong",
• "God's hand is with the entire community".

In history, it has been the most important factor in defining the meaning of the other sources and thus in formulating the doctrine and practice of the Muslim community. This is so because ijma' represents the unanimous agreement of Muslims on a regulation or law at any given time. There are various views on ijma' among Muslims. Sunni jurists consider ijma' as a source, in matters of legislation, as important as the Qur'an and Sunnah. Shiite jurists, however, consider ijma' as source of secondary importance, and a source that is, unlike the Qur'an and Sunnah, not free from error. Ijma' was always used to refer to agreement reached in the past, either remote or near. Amongst the Sunni jurists there is diversity on who is eligible to participate in ijma' , as shown in the following table: 

School of jurisprudence Formation of ijma' Rationale
Hanafi through public agreement of Islamic jurists the jurists are experts on legal matters
Shafi'i through agreement of the entire community and public at large the people cannot agree on anything erroneous
Maliki through agreement amongst the residents of Medina, the first Islamic capital Islamic tradition says "Medina expels bad people like the furnace expels impurities from iron"
Hanbali through agreement and practice of Muhammad's Companions they were the most knowledgeable on religious matters and rightly guided
Usuli only the consensus of the ulama of the same period as the Prophet or Shia Imams is binding. consensus is not genuinely binding in its own right, rather it is binding in as much as it is a means of discovering the Sunnah.

In modern Muslim usage it is no longer associated with traditional authority and appears as democratic institution and an instrument of reform.

Mahmood, M.(2011).The principles of muhammadan  law:Al-Qanoon Publishers.

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