I am married to a religiously observant young woman, but her father does not pray and has some beliefs that render him an apostate. Is our marriage contract valid, given that it was concluded in the presence of the marriage official and witnesses?

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, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and messenger.

The scholars have agreed in a consensus that only a Muslim man may conclude the marriage contract of a Muslim woman. The contract is invalid if it is concluded by a non-Muslim. However, you should note that anyone who is a Muslim (or who sincerely embraces Islam) can not be ruled a non-Muslim except with confirmed evidence. It is impermissible to declare a person to be an apostate unless he does an act that renders him an apostate and evidence was established against him.

Anyone who does an act of disbelief and evidence was not established against him cannot be declared a non-Muslim.

To judge a person to be a non-Muslim, certain conditions must be fulfilled and all impediments must be absent. It is important to note that this matter is assigned to the scholars.