A number of the _Ulema_ who had finished the law course, and who at some previous time had chosen to become counsellors and jurists rather than to take up the severer and more active judicial career, constituted a distinct body, the _muftis_, who were held in high esteem. One of these was assigned as associate to the judge of every important city, to the number of about two hundred in all, while others were counsellors for the _Beylerbeys_ and _Sanjak Beys_. Appointed for life, they lived in retirement, having no initiative of action. When the judge, _Bey_, or any private citizen, confronted by a case or other matter which involved a learned knowledge of the Sacred Law, submitted to one of them a question in writing, usually in the form of a hypothetical case, it was the duty of the _mufti_, after careful consideration of the question in the light of the law books of the school of Abu Hanifa, to give an answer that applied the Sacred Law to the matter concerned. These answers, which were called _fetvas_, were usually extremely concise and unaccompanied by reasoning; they were prepared and sealed in solemn form.[660] When a judge or a _Bey_ proposed to his _mufti_ a question touching a pending law case, the _mufti’s_ response ordinarily settled the case. Private citizens who obtained _fetvas_ ordinarily did so to help their causes in pending law suits; here again a pertinent question and answer would usually settle the case. Since there was no class of professional lawyers, the _muftis_ were a necessary and very useful body. In ordinary cities the _mufti_ ranked after the judge. This was not the case in Constantinople, where the sultan and his officers of government frequently had questions to present which touched matters of the highest public importance. As a consequence the _mufti_ of Constantinople became _par excellence_ the _Mufti_. Mohammed II assigned to him also the title of _Sheik ul-Islam_, the Ancient of Islam, which in later times was to become his ordinary title. The _Mufti_ was not regularly chosen from among his fellows, but was usually advanced by the sultan from the active judicial service.[661] He had the right to appoint and promote all the other _muftis_ of the empire. A special bureau called the _Fetva-khaneh_ was created by Suleiman to assist the _Mufti_ in preparing decisions.