Is it permissible to give a fatwa based on taqleed
Question

                Is it permissible to give a fatwa based on taqleed?
Praise be to Allah. 
          There are various opinions on this matter. 
 
          Ibn al-Qayyim said: 
 
          The first view is that it is not permissible to give 
          a fatwa based on taqleed [Translator’s 
          note: Taqleed [lit. imitation] means repeating the views of scholars 
          to others without knowing the details or basis of their fatwas]  
          , because that is not knowledge, and giving a fatwa without knowledge 
          is haraam. There is no dispute among people that taqleed is not the 
          same as knowledge and that the muqallid (the one who imitates or repeats 
          the views of others) cannot be given the name of ‘aalim (scholar). This 
          is the view of most of our companions and the view of the majority of 
          Shaafa’is. 
 
          The second view is that it is permissible with regard 
          to himself; he may follow the view of one of the scholars if the fatwa 
          is with regard to himself only. But it is not permissible for him to 
          repeat the views of a scholar in giving a fatwa to someone else. This 
          is the view of Ibn Battah and others among our companions. Al-Qaadi 
          said: Ibn Battah mentioned in his letters to al-Barmaki: it is not permitted 
          for a person to issue a fatwa based on what he had heard from a scholar 
          who issued a fatwa. Rather it is permissible for him to follow that 
          scholar’s view with regard to himself, but repeating his views and issuing 
          a fatwa to someone else, this is not permitted. 
 
          The third view is that this is permitted when necessary 
          and when there is no scholar who is qualified to make ijtihaad. This 
          is the most correct view and this is our guideline. Al-Qaadi said: Abu 
          Hafs said in his comments: I heard Abu ‘Ali al-Hasan ibn ‘Abd-Allaah 
          al-Najjaad say: I heard Abu’l-Husayn ibn Bashraan say: what I may criticize 
          a man for is learning five issues of fiqh from Ahmad then sitting by 
          a pillar in the mosque [i.e., setting himself up as a scholar] and issuing 
          fatwas based on that.