The danger of rushing to issue fatwas
Question

                There are some muftis on some satellite channels who answer all questions without exception. Some people in some gatherings, when a question is posed, rush to answer it and each of them wants to speak before the other. What is the Islamic ruling on this?
Praise be to Allah. 
          Ibn al-Qayyim said: 
 
          The salaf, the Sahaabah and Taabi’een, used to regard 
          it as makrooh to rush to issue fatwas. Each of them would wish that 
          someone else would take care of it, but if he realized that he had no 
          alternative but to answer, he would do his utmost to find the ruling 
          from the Qur’aan and Sunnah or the words of the Rightly-Guided khaleefahs, 
          then he would give his fatwa. ‘Abd-Allaah ibn al-Mubaarak said: Sufyaan 
          told us from ‘Ataa’ ibn al-Saa’ib from ‘Abd al-Rahmaan ibn Abi Layla 
          who said: I met one hundred and twenty of the Companions of the Messenger 
          of Allaah 
          
          (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) – and I think he said, in 
          the mosque – and there was none of them who had to speak but he wished 
          that his brother would take care of it; there was no one who had to 
          give a fatwa but he wished that his brother would take care of it. Imaam 
          Ahmad said: Jareer told us from ‘Ataa’ ibn al-Saa’ib from ‘Abd al-Rahmaan 
          ibn Abi Layla that he said: I met one hundred and twenty of the Ansaar 
          from among the Companions of the Messenger of Allaah 
          
          (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and there was no man among 
          them who was asked about something but he would wish that his brother 
          would take care of it, and there was none who had to speak but he would 
          wish that his brother would take care of it. 
 
          Maalik said, narrating from Yahya ibn Sa’eed that Bukayr 
          ibn al-Ashajj told him, narrating from Mu’aawiyah ibn Abi ‘Ayaash that 
          he was sitting with ‘Abd-Allaah ibn al-Zubayr and ‘Aasim ibn ‘Umar, 
          when Muhammad ibn Iyaas ibn al-Bukayr came and said, A man from among 
          the desert people has divorced his wife three times, what do you think? 
          ‘Abd-Allaah ibn al-Zubayr said, This matter is something about which 
          we know nothing; go to ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Abbaas and Abu Hurayrah, for 
          I have just left them with ‘Aa’ishah the wife of the Prophet 
          
          (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), then come and tell us (what 
          they say). So I went and asked them, and Ibn ‘Abbaas said to Abu Hurayrah: 
          Give him the answer, O Abu Hurayrah, for here there is a problem. Abu 
          Hurayrah said: one talaaq makes her divorced, and three makes her forbidden 
          to him until she has married another husband. 
 
          Maalik narrated that Yahyaa ibn Sa’eed said: Ibn ‘Abbaas 
          said: Everyone who issues fatwas to the people concerning everything 
          that they ask him about is crazy. Maalik said: I heard something similar 
          from Ibn Mas’ood. This was narrated by Ibn Waddaah from Yoosuf ibn ‘Adiy 
          from ‘Abd ibn Humayd from al-A’mash from Shaqeeq from ‘Abd-Allaah; and 
          it was narrated by Habeeb ibn Abi Thaabit from Abu Waa’il from ‘Abd-Allaah. 
 
          Sahnoon ibn Sa’eed said: the most audacious of the people 
          in giving fatwas is the one who has the least knowledge; a man may have 
          a grasp of one branch of knowledge and he thinks that all the truth 
          is to be found in this branch. 
 
          I say: being audacious in giving fatwas may be because 
          of a lack of knowledge or because of an abundance thereof. If he is 
          lacking in knowledge he gives a fatwa on everything concerning which 
          he is asked without knowledge. If his knowledge is abundant he will 
          be able to answer a lot of questions. Hence Ibn ‘Abbaas was one of the 
          Sahaabah who issued the most fatwas. We have mentioned above that his 
          fatwas were compiled in twenty volumes. Sa’eed ibn al-Musayyib also 
          issued a lot of fatwas, and they used to call him al-Jaree’ (the 
          Bold), as was mentioned by Ibn Wahb from Muhammad ibn Sulaymaan al-Muraadi 
          from Abu Ishaaq, who said: I used to see a man at that time entering 
          and asking about some matter, and the people would divert him, sending 
          him from one gathering to another, until he was sent to the gathering 
          of Sa’eed ibn al-Musayyib, because they did not like to issue a fatwa. 
          He said, And they used to call Sa’eed ibn al-Musayyib, al-Jaree’ (the 
          Bold). 
 
          Sahnoon said: I memorized some issues concerning which 
          there would be eight opinions from eight of the leading scholars, so 
          how could I hasten to answer before I am certain which one is correct? 
          Why should anyone blame me for not giving an answer? Ibn Wahb said: 
          Ashhal ibn Haatim told us from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Awn from Ibn Seereen 
          who said: Hudhayfah said: The one who gives fatwas to the people is 
          one of three: either he knows what has been abrogated of the Qur’aan, 
          or he is a leader who has no choice (but to issue a fatwa) or he is 
          a fool who is doing something that is not his job. He said, perhaps 
          Ibn Seereen said: I am neither of the first two, and I do not want to 
          be the third.