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ADMINISTRATIONOFESTATEANDSUCCESSIONUNDERISLAMIC
LAW.
By
Hon.KadiZakariyaIdakwojiMuhammad
Hon.GrandKadi,KogiState.
Introduction
PraisebetoAllah,theLordoftheworlds,whobyHisgraceand
volition created us humans and showed us in the Quran how to
divide inheritance and may His peace and blessings be on our
ProphetMuhammad,Hisfamilyandcompanions(Sahaba)(Ameen).
Iverymuchappreciatethissingularhonourdonetomebythe
AdministratoroftheNationalJudicialInstituteandtheManagement
forinvitingmetoserveasaresourcepersonattheRefreshercourse
for judicialOfficersonCurrentTrends inLawandAdministrationof
Justice,takingplacebetween14th–18thMarch,2016,enablingmeto
write and present a paper titled: “Administration of Estate and
Succession Under Islamic Law”, to form part of the conference
theme which is “Promoting Judicial Performance Through
InnovationsandReforms”
2
This topicofdiscussion, “EstateandSuccession” isoneof the
most important and significant sources of knowledge in Islam. This
waswhytheQuranlaidmuchemphasisonitsimpactonmuslimlife.
InalmosteveryverseoftheQuranrevealedtoProphetMuhammad
(PBUH), majority of the verses were pregnant as they still needed
interpretationsfromthepartofitsrecipient,Muhammad(PBUH),for
example,institutionssuchasSalat,Zakah,Sawm,Hajjetcwithmany
severalverses,spreadallovertheQur’an,stillneededtheprophet’s
explanationstofullypracticalisethem.
As for Estate and Succession, the Qur’an leaves no stone
unturned. It gives detail information as to how to administer or
distribute theEstateofadeceasedMuslimamongsthis successors.
As for the allotees, it provides detailed share each deserves to get
from the existing estate.On the part of the Prophet he is the role
model for all muslims as stated in Qur’an 33:21 where Allah says:
“You have indeed in the apostle of Allah, a beautiful pattern of
conductforanyonewhosehopeisinAllahandthefinaldayandwho
engages much in the praise of Allah”. He laid more emphasis in
teaching this obligatory knowledge to his companions until they
acquired the knowledge and became experts in it. The prophet
(PBUH)notingthatthisimportantknowledgemightbeneglectedby
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hisfollowers,warnedthatallmuslimsmustseekitatallcostsothat
there would be no scarcity in the number of preservers of its
knowledgeamongstIslamicscholars.
Today,thisprophecybythemessengerofGodhasmanifested
in every facet of muslim life as majority of muslims in today’s
generationlackadequateknowledgeofIlmul–al–Faraid(obligatory
knowledge) as prescribed in the Qur’an. Lack of this knowledge in
our times has made women and children victims of either greedy
relationsorignoranceprevailingtodayhasmadesomelegalsharers
lose their rights and theactivitiesof ignorantEstateadministrators
most often leads to misguidance of inheritors. That is why the
prophet said, “Learn the knowledge related to inheritance (Ilmul
Faraid)andteachittoothersasthisconstituteshalfofknowledge”1.
On the whole, I thank the administrator of NJI and the
convenersofthisconference/workshopforchoosingthistopic.With
humility therefore, I reiterate that whatever flaws you find in this
writeup,IownthemandmayAllahforgive(Ameen).
The topic as stated above is “Administration of Estate and
SuccessionunderIslamicLaw”.Foronetotreatthistopic,weneed
1. SunanIbnMajah
4
to first understand some keywords. These are Islamic Law, Estate
and Succession. I will (In Sha Allah) endeavour to examine these
termsinseriatim.
WhatisIslamicLaworSharia?:ShariaisanArabicwordwhich,
literally,meansapath,awayorroadthatleadsonetoanywatering
place.2
Legally speaking, Sharia could be defined as “The immutable
law of the creator for the guidance of humanity”. It could also be
definedasadivinelawordainedfortheguidanceofbothmundane
and spiritual lifeof themuslimUmmah.As it is ofdivineorigin, its
guidance encompasses the past, the present and the future life of
mankind. Inotherwords Islamisareligion(Deen)andawayof life
foralltruemuslimswhoadheretoitsteachings.
Historically, Islamic Law or Sharia originated right from the
period of Prophet Muhammad (SAW). Its laws started right from
therewith thepiece-meal revelationof theHolyQuran to Prophet
Muhammad (SAW), who on His own part stood as link and
interpreter of the dictates of the Quran especially where the
revelation needed explanation for the understanding of its
2.AminatBasharAlabasu(Mrs).“ShariaLegalSystemVis-à-visHumanRightinNigeria”,NJILawJournal,2010
5
adherents. This took place for about 23 years (610 – 632 AD).
Throughthisdivineroleofmessenger-shipbyProphetMuhammad,
all His actions, sayings and salient approvalwere preserved by the
Sahabaand/ortheirfollowers.This isregardedasSunnahorHadith
ofProphetMuhammad.Thiscultureofpreservationandpracticeof
SunnahcontinueduntilthedeathofProphetMuhammad.
Under the rightly guided Caliphs, that is, Caliph Abubakar as
Sideeq 632 AD – 634 AD, Umar bn al-Khatab 634 AD – 646 AD,
UthmanbinAffan646AD–656ADandAlibnAbiTalib656AD–661
AD,theQuranassourceofLawofIslamwiththeSunnahofProphet
MuhammedservedasIslamiclegalsources.UndertheSahaba,with
theexpansionofIslamtovariouslandsandpeoples,thetwosources
servedasreferralpointsofguidancetomuslims.
When issues not definitely decided upon by both primary
sources occurred, the Sahaba resorted to Ijtihad, e.g using their
extensive knowledge of the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet
Muhammad (SAW) to solve thenew issues thatwerenot explicitly
decided upon. Any solution arrived at through this Ijtihad was
termedConsensusof theSahabaoropinionof the Juristofanage,
whichhencebecameasourceoflawinIslamicLaworSharia.Other
6
sources of law in Islam followed these three and they emanated
fromtheIjtihadoflatergenerationsthatfollowedthecompanionsof
theProphet.Weavoiddetailsbecauseoftimefactorandrelevance
toourdiscussion.
The Jurists refer to these basic sources as “AL – Adillat al –
Qatiyyat”whichareabsolutely sureand irrefutablearguments.The
secondoneisreferredtoasAl–Adillatal–Ijtihadiyyahwhichmeans
argumentandproofderivedthroughexertionandthisisfromNass;
i.e.theHolyQuranandtheSunnah.Theseothersourcesarereferred
to by Jurist as subsidiary sources. They include Ijmah,which is the
consensus opinion of scholars/Jurists of the muslim Ummah in
particularagesandonagivenlaw.
Qiyas, a sourceof Islamic law,meansananalogical deduction
which literallymeans “to guess or to estimate” ameasurement by
comparison.Technically,itmeansextensionofaShariarulefroman
original case (Asl) toanewcase (Far’u) “by reasonsof aneffective
case(Illa)whichiscommontobothcases3.
Othersare Istihsan, removalofdiscrepancies in lawforpublic
good, Urf which means custom, Istislah consideration for public
3.AbdurRahmanDoi:“OutlineofIslamicjurisprudence”
7
interest and Istihab, presumption of continuity in the natural
absenceoflawetc.
ConceptofInheritance
The conceptof inheritanceor succession in Islam is rooted in
the transient nature of man’s life. Man’s transient nature itself is
underscoredbytwoversesoftheholyQurannamely:
كل نفس ذآئقة الموت ثم إلینا ترجعون.
“Everysoulshalltastedeathandthenunto
usisthereturn”(Quran29:57)4
ا إلیھ راجعون وإن ا 2 الذین إذا أصابتھم مصیبة قالوا إن
“…TrulytoAllahwebelongandtruly,
tohimweshallreturn”(Quran2:156)5
The implication of the above verses is thatman’s sojourn on
earthisforalimitedperiod.Thencomestheappointedtimetodie.
Duringtheshortspanofhislife,whateverheacquiresintheworldis
leftbehindexcepthisgooddeedswhichwillgowithhim.
Thepropertyandthebelongingsthatheleavesbehindgoesto
his successors. Islam being a completeway of life, the HolyQuran
contains rules for the disposal of such property and belongings.
4.Quran29–575.Quran2:156
8
Somespecificprovisions in theHolyQuranandSunnahof theHoly
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) forming the origin of the concept,
principlesandscienceofinheritanceareasFollow:
“Itisprescribedforyouwhendeathapproaches
anyofyou,ifheleaveswealth,thathemakes
abequesttoparentsandnextofkin,
accordingtoreasonablemanners.”
في أوال كر مثل حظ األنثیین فإن كن نساء فوق اثنتین فلھن یوصیكم هللا دكم للذ
ا دس مم ثلثا ما ترك وإن كانت واحدة فلھا النصف وألبویھ لكل واحد منھما الس
لث فإن كان لھ إخوة ترك إن كان لھ ولد فإن ل ھ الث م یكن لھ ولد وورثھ أبواه فألم
ھم ة یوصي بھا أو دین آباؤكم وأبناؤكم ال تدرون أی دس من بعد وصی ھ الس فألم
كان علیما حكیماأقرب لكم نفعا فریضة من هللا إن هللا
“Allahcommandsyouasregardsyour
Children’s(inheritance);tothemale,aportion
equaltothatoftwofemales;if(thereare)
women(onlydaughters),twoormore,
theirshareistwothirdoftheinheritance;
ifonlyone(daughter),hershareisahalf.
Forparents,asixthshareoftheinheritance
toeach,ifthedeceasedleftchildren;
9
ifnochildren,andtheparentsarethe(only)
heirs,themotherhasathird;ifthedeceased
leftbrothers(orsister),themotherhasa
sixth.(Thedistributioninallcasesis)after
thepaymentoflegacieshemayhave
bequeathedordebt.Youknownotwhich
ofthem,whetheryourparentsoryour
childrenarenearesttoyouinbenefit;
(thoseshare)areordainedbyAllah.And
AllahisEverAllKnower,Allwise”(Quran4:11)6
Hadith:
Narrated by Jabir: “The Prophet (PBUH) and Abubakar (RA)
cameonfoottopaymeavisit(duringmyillness)atBanuSalma
(dwellings).Theprophet (PBUH) foundmeunconscious, sohe
asked for water and performed the ablution from it and
sprinkledsomewateroverme. I cametomysensesandsaid:
“Allah’s Apostle, what do you orderme to do as regardsmy
wealth?”sothiswasrevealed:“Allahcommandsyouasregards
yourchildren’sinheritance”7.
6.Quran4:117.Sahihal–BukhariKitabulTafsir101
10
TheIslamiclaworprincipleofinheritanceorsuccessionis
referredto inArabic languageasAL–MIRATH.Aboutthirty–
five verses of the Holy Quranmention or cover it directly or
indirectly.
DirectlytheQuransaysinSurah57:10
“Andwhatcauseshaveyouwhyyoushould
notspendinthecauseofAllah?FortoAllah
belongstheinheritanceoftheheavensandtheearth”
Indirectlyitsays;
ترجع األمور ماوات وما في األرض وإلى هللا ما في الس و8
“ToAllahbelongsallthatisintheHeavenand
Earth.ToAllahdoallmattersreturn”(Quran3:109)8
While al – Mirath connotes the inheritance or succession in
general,Al–Faraidwhichisusedinreferencetothesubjectmatter
connotes a fixed share, that is the apportioned shares to the
individualheirs.
Inheritance or succession is the knowledge of rules of Islamic
lawwhichguideonwho inheritsandwhodoesnotaswellaswhat
sharesgototheheirsfromthepropertyofthedeceased(estate)9.
8.Quran3:1099.FiqhAl–SunnahVol.3Page498
11
AccordingtoAl–Sabuni,(MA1993)Al–Mirathor‘Fard’isthe
legalterminologyconnotingtheprocessoftransferofownershipof
the estate of the deceased muslim to his surviving heirs in
accordancewiththeprincipleslaiddownbyIslamiclaw.10
WithregardstoIlmul–Faraid, i.eobligatoryknowledge,there
are some traditionsof theprophet inHadithbooks thatencourage
muslims to acquire knowledge of inheritance. He instructed that if
care was not taken by muslims on its acquisition they might risk
losses. He also reminded muslims that if muslims deal with Ilmul
Faraid in accordance with their own selfish interests and not in
consonancewiththedictatesofAllah,theymightalsoriskitsloss.
On the basis of this, we refer to the following Hadith of the
prophet(SAW)
1. AnHadith reportedbyAbdullah IbnAmrbinAL– ‘As (may
Allahbepleasedwithbothofthem)said:Learningisofthree
kinds and any learning beside these is only a beauty; a
perfect holy verse, an actual sunnah, and a just religious
obligations11.
2. In another Hadith reported by Ibn Mas’ud (May Allah be
pleased with him) He said the ProphetMuhammad (SAW)
10.AL–MawarithfiAL–ShariyyatiFiDhaulAL–KitabiWalSunna;2ndEditionDarulKalami,Beirut.)
11.NarratedbyIbnMajah
12
said: “Learn your religious obligations (Ilmal Faraid) and
teachthemtootherpeople,forIammortal,andknowledge
willdisappearandseditionwillappeartosuchanextentthat
oncetwopeopledisagreeaboutanobligation,theywillnot
findanyonetodecidebetweenthem”12.
3. InanothertraditionreportedbyAbuHurairah,referredusto
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Abu Hurairah reported the
following, “Learn your religiousobligations and teach them
toothers.Theyarehalfoftheknowledge,andknowledgeis
forgettable. Besides, it is the first knowledge to disappear
frommyUmmah”13.
The above sayings of the prophet indicate that Estate and
Succession occupy a very high position in Islamic quest for
knowledge.
AdministrationofEstateandSuccession
BeforedoinganythingonanEstate in Islamandanythingthat
fallsundersuccession,thereasonableandmostwisememberofthe
deceasedrelationswhomaybeeligibletoinheritwouldnowponder
and ask themselves after condolences for anyWILL he or she (the
12.NarratedbyAhmed,AL–TirmidhiandAL–Hakim.13.NarratedbyIbnMajaandal–DarrQutniy.
13
deceased)may have left behind to help guide in administering the
Estate. They may equally ask about any credit or debts. The next
thing shall be preparation for his/her burial expenses from his/her
legacy.Aftermeetingalltheabovelistedexpensesi.ethewill,ifany,
isremoved,debt,ifany,ispaidoffandcredit,ifany,isreturned,and
all the bequests are taken out, the remainder of the legacy now
becomestherightoftheinheritors.Onthebasisofthese,theQuran
insurah4:12says“….Afterpaymentoflegacyhe(orShe)mayhave
bequeathedordebt,sothatnolossiscaused(toanyone)”.
One of the most important principles of Administration of
Estate in Islam is that when all necessities aremet, the remaining
portion of the legacy shall now be distributed among the rightful
heirs. This must be seen to be done with assistance from some
muslimScholarssothateveryrightfulinheritorisgivenhis/herdue.
This isbecauseanyunnecessarydelay indistributionof inheritance
some-times leads to someproblems.For instance,deathof rightful
sharers may deprive him from enjoying his shares. In some other
cases it leads to litigation which may breed disharmony in a
supposedlypeacefulfamily.
14
Besides these reasons, there may be greedy ones amongst
rightful sharers and even unqualified sharers who may use delay
tacticstodeprivetherightfulonestheirrights.Forthis,Allahinthe
Quran surah4:10 condemnsdeprivationof a rightful heirwhenHe
says,“verily,thosewhounjustlyeatupthepropertyoforphans,they
eatupbutfireintotheirbelliesandtheywillbeburntintheblazing
fire.”
Islam warned that the legacy left behind by the deceased
muslimmustnotbeusedinwaysunacceptabletoIslam.Itmustbe
preserved for the rightful heirs to inherit. In other words, when a
muslimdiestheownershipofhis/herlegacynowtransferstohis/her
inheritors. For Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in a Hadith that
“whenthesonofAdamdies,hisgooddeedsceaseexceptforthree
types: Continuous charity, a righteous son who prays for him, or
knowledgeheleftbehindfromwhichpeoplegetgreatbenefit”
On the whole, the Quran (surah Al – Israi) 17:34 says “And
comenotneartheOrphan’spropertyexceptto improve it,untilhe
attainstheageoffullstrength”.
15
SuccessiveDutiesBeforeAdministeringEstateinIslam
ThesuccessivedutiesbeforeadministeringEstateinIslaminclude:
1. Knowledge of the division of inheritance according to Islamic
Jurisprudence(IlmalFaraid)orobligatoryknowledge.
2. The subject matter i.e the Estate which is all that was left
behind by the deceasedmuslim includingmonetary cash and
property.
3. Purpose or objective: giving out of the Estate, the share to
everyrightfulsharer
4. Ruling: it is a collective responsibility (Fardun Kifaya) which
when it is once performed by a group of muslims, it now
becomesasunnahforothers.
Mirath–RelatedRights
Inthiscasefiverightsconcerninginheritanceshallbelistedandthey
arearrangedaccordingtotheirimportance.
1. The cost of thewater (to be used inwashing the corpse) the
shroud, the embalming, the fees of the washer, the grave
diggers etc. The costs of these expenses must be deducted
fromthemainEstatebeforedistribution.14
14.InheritanceinIslambyA.N.R.CBukhari,page8.
16
2. Related rights to the inheritance itself. This includes debts
incurred by the deceased while alive. E.g failing to pay out
Zakah from his wealth if he is so qualified to offer it before
deathovertookhim; is thewealth left behindmortgaged and
/orinvolvedinbusinesspartnershipwithothers?Arethereany
financial problems? All these questions must be addressed
beforethelegacyisconsideredfordistribution.
3. Anotherconsideration is thedebtswhicharepartly relatedto
inheritance and partly related to the rights of Allah and are
considered to be a compulsory debt left behind by the
deceased.E.gpaymentofZakah, kaffarrah (expiations)orhajj
expenditureandthatis,ifhehadcapabilitytoperformhajjand
hedidnotdo it in his life timeand thedebtowed tohuman
beingse.ghavingloansfrombanks,humansetc.
4. Thelegacyorwill i.eonethirdor lessoftheEstate leftbythe
deceasedwhichmighthavebeenwilledtoanon-rightfulsharer
intheEstateand/orwhichmighthavebeenwilledfor“Charity
Projects” such as construction of mosque, provision of pipe
bornewaterforpoornoninheritingrelativesandfriendsetcall
these could fall in this fourth related rights. In Islam, an
inheritordoesnotshareinthewillofhisPrepositus.
17
TheQuran in supporting thesedimensions in surah 4:13 – 14
says,
ورسولھ یدخلھ جنات تجري من تحتھا األنھار ومن یطع هللا تلك حدود هللا
خالدین فیھا وذلك الفوز العظیم ورسولھ ویتعد حدوده یدخلھ . ومن یعص هللا
ھ عذاب مھین نارا خالدا فیھا ول
“These are the limits (set by) Allah or ordainment as regards
lawofinheritance,andwhosoeverobeysAllahandHisMessenger
(Muhammad) (PBUH) will be admitted to gardens under which
rivers flow (inparadise) to abide there-in, and thatwill be great
success and whosoever disobey Allah and His messengers, and
transgressesHislimits,Hewillcasthiminthefire,toabidethere-
inandheshallhaveadisgracefultorment”
The above verse shows how the issue of willing to a legal
inheritoriscondemnedbyAllahandHismessenger.
5. Thefifthrelatedrightof inheritanceis inconsonancewiththe
dictates of Allah (SWT) where He said in surah 4:12 “After
paymentoflegacieshe(orShe)mayhavebequeathedordebts,
sothatnolossiscausedto(anyone)”.
18
Accordingly after satisfying the fifth related right, the
Ashabul Faraidmust be the first to receive their legal shares.
Whatever remains as residue now goes to the paternal heirs
(Asaba). This view is supported by the statement from the
Prophet (PBUH)whereHesaid, “Give theFaraid (theshareof
the inheritance that is prescribed in theQuran) to thosewho
areentitledtoreceivethem,andwhateverremainsshouldgo
totheclosestmalerelativesofthedeceased”15.
See also Suratul Anfal 8:75where Allah said, “Blood relatives
are nearer to one another (regarding inheritance) in the decree
ordained by Allah”. It is only where there are no heirs at all that
Estatesgotothepublictreasury(BaitilMal)inIslam.
EstateandItsAdministration
Once amuslim dies, his proprietary interest byway of assets
and liabilities isreferredtoashisEstateor legacy.TheArabicword
for it is AL – Tarkah literallymeans “to leave behind”. It originates
from the Arabic root “Ta – Ra – Ka. Estate refers to all items of
property, movable or immovable left behind by a deceased
Muslim”.16
15.InheritanceinIslambyAbu16.AmbaliM.A.”ThePrincipleandPracticeofSuccessionunderIslamic
Law”.Page114ANJC,2003
19
TheEstate leftbyadeceasedmuslim isnotalways thewhole
legacy that could qualify immediately for distribution by the
administrator.However,forthepurposeofsharingittotheheirs,it
isnotthegrossestatebutratherthenetestatethatqualifiesasthe
share-able estate. The net estate is determined by deducting or
removingthefollowingfromthegrossestate:
1. Deposits: this includes the return of deposits, pledges and
security in thecustodyof thedeceased.Theseshall firstofall
betakenoutofthegrossestate.Allsuchitemsunderhiscare
after ascertaining themmust be taken out of the estate and
returned to the original owners so as to know the actual
estate.17AlsocertainpropertywhichtheShariamakesunlawful
cannot form part of inheritance or deceased estate in Islam
even though it might be under his possession during his life
time. Such wealth could be those acquired through Haram
(forbidden) means e.g gambling, prostitution, bribery,
brigandage theft etc. Such properties are not regarded as
qualifiedestatesforIslamicinheritance.Ifanassetwaspledged
ormortgaged as security for a debt by the deceasedmuslim,
suchassetcannot formpartof theestatefor inheritance.Any
17.AmbaliM.A.Ibid
20
Insurance/endowmentpolicy(s)whichencouragesRibaorsuch
otherunislamiccontract(s)cannotformpartofqualifiedestate
forinheritanceinIslam.18
In Islam, only the actual sum of premium paid by the
deceased constitutes part of the qualified estate. Right in
Business partnership enjoyed in business by the deceased
ceasesafterhisdeath.Hisinheritorscouldonlyinherithisshare
in the business enterprise. Any continuous profit, loss or gain
afterthedeathexcludestheinheritors.
2. Debt: even if all burial expenses are expended and removed
fromthegrossestate; thedeceased’s creditors if they remain
still have rights on the estate or legacy left behind by the
deceased. Whatarethesetypesofdebts? Debtcouldbethe
one which was confirmed by the deceased before some
membersofhisfamilyorthroughthetestimonyofwitnessesor
theoneknownbyallpeoplearoundthedeceased.Adebtcould
alsobeconfirmedbythedeceasedbeforehediedandevenif
there is no witness. If there is ascertained debt without any
doubt,itispaidofffromtheestate.Ifafterburialexpensesand
paymentoftheascertaineddebtthereisnotenoughlefttopay
hiscreditorsagain,theremainingestatecouldbegivenoutas
18.HajiyaSariyuBalogun–AbdulMajeed:“AGlimpseATINHERITANCE”.Pages157and158“IssuesAffectingMuslims”
21
advanced payment to the creditors. The rest debt could be
waved or left till hereafter. In Islam it is not a must for the
would-beinheritorstopaythedebtincurredbytheirdeceased
relatives through their nose i.e through their hard earned
resources. If they decide to do so, it is Charity. From one
statement of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) he said, “The
Shaheed(Martyr)willbeforgivenallhissinsbutdebt”soifthe
inheritorsdothischarity,itshallliberatethedeceasedfromthe
burdenofdebtinthegraveandHereafter.Othercategoriesof
debts have been earlier mentioned e.g Zakat, Salat unsaid,
Sawm,Hajjetc.19
It should however be noted that in an ideal Islamic
Community,where theTarikacannotsettle thedebtsandthe
relationsareunabletosettlesuchdebts,theresponsibilitiesfor
settlingsuchdebtshifttoBaital–mal.
AdministratorofEstateinIslam.
Preferably, he should be a freemale, God fearingMuslim or
personwho is consciousof the fact thathe toowoulddieoneday
and leave behind estate and heirs. These qualities flow from the
contentsoftheHolyQuran:
19.“IssuesAffectingIslamandMuslims”AL–Maslaha:JournalsofLawandReligion.ByNAMLAS,UnilorinVol.4,page160–162,2007–2008
22
ولیقولوا قوا هللا ة ضعافا خافوا علیھم فلیت ی قوال سدیدا ولیخش الذین لو تركوا من خلفھم ذر
“Andletthose(ExecutorsandGuardians)havethesame
fearintheirmindsastheywouldhavefortheirown,
iftheyhaveleftweakoffspringbehind.Soletthemfear
Allahandspeakrightwords”.20
GeneralPrinciples
Thegeneralprinciplesofinheritanceareobtainedintheverseofthe
QuranSuarah4:7whereAllahsays“Fromwhatisleftbyparentand
those nearest relation, there is a share for men and a share for
women,whetherthepropertyissmallorlarge,adeterminedshare”
Fromtheaboveverse five legal implications/principlescould
bededuced,namely:
1. Theinheritancecoversbothmenandwomenunliketheperiod
beforetheadventofIslamwhenwomenwerenotqualifiedto
inherit fromtheestateoftheirdeceasedrelatives.Eventoday
in Nigeria, many traditions still exclude women from
inheritanceandareconsideredaspartoftheestatemeantfor
inheritance.
20.Quran4:9
23
2. Thesecondimplicationisthat,nomatterhowlittleadeceased
person’s property might be, it must be distributed justly
amongsttheheirs.
3. The inheritance applies to all kinds of property, movable or
immovableoranyotherkinds.
4. Thequestionofinheritancearisesonlywhenthedeceasedhas
leftbehindanyproperty.
5. The nearer relation precludes the distant relation from the
inheritance.
Pre–ConditionsorRequirementsforInheritance.
TheArabictermforconditionthatmustexistforinheritanceto
takeeffectisknownas“Shurutal–Irth”.Theseconditionsare:
1. Death of the prepositus must be confirmed or a competent
courtmust havedeclaredhim/her to bemissing. (mafqood)21
Uponcredibleevidence thathe isabsent fromhisusualplace
ofabodeforalongtimeandnothinghasbeenheardfromhim.
2. The existence of Heirs whomust be proved to have survived
thedeceasednomatterhowshorttheintervalmightbe.
3. TheremustbeanEstate(property)tobeinherited.
21.QuranSurah4:176
24
4. Thenexus(relationship)betweenthedeceasedmuslimandthe
heir apparent which qualifies the later to inherit the former
mustbeestablished22.Thisrelationshipusuallyisonaccountof
eitherNasab,ZawajorWala.
ImpedimentstoInheritance.
In Islam, thereare somegrounds thatdisqualify anotherwise
qualified heir from inheriting the estate of his / her deceased
relation.Theseare:
1. Differences or change in religion: Based on the Hadith which
saysthatamuslimcannotinheritanunbelieverandviceversa,
the four Sunni Schools are agreed that a muslim shall not
inherit from nonmuslim and vice versa. The Prophet (PBUH)
said,“Amuslimdoesnotinheritanon–muslim,neitherdoes
anon–musliminheritamuslim”.23
2. The second restriction or impediment is Slavery (male and
Female).Slavescannotinheritneithercantheybeinheritedin
Islam. The reason is because whatever the slaves possess
belongtotheirmasters.Oneoftheexceptionshoweveristhat,
afreedslavecanbeinheritedbyhisMasterandnovice–versa.
Providedthatthefreedslavehasnorelation(s).
22.As–SayyidUthmanAl-Malik(1402/1982):SirajusSalik,commentaryonAshahulMasalik,darulFikr,Lebanon,Vol.11page104;JatanV.
Mailafiaof(1998)1NWLR(535)P.693(SC)
23.FathuAl-Bari
25
3. Killing or Murder prevents the killer from inheriting the
murdered whether such action was pre-meditative or by
mistake, even if he is the legators son. This is supportedbya
sayingfromtheProphet(PBUH)wherehesaid,“Thekillerdoes
not inheritanything”24.Accordingtosomejurists,there isone
case called “Commonmistake”. It is a situationwhere twoor
morepeoplegotinvolvedinthecourseofalegator’sdeathby
mistake e.g motor accident where the driver may be an
inheritorof thedeceased. In this case the rateof thedriver’s
mistakeisdeductedfromhisshareanddistributedamongthe
restofthe inheritors.Afterthededuction,whatremains ishis
finalshare.25
4. StillBirth:astillbornchilddelivereddeadshallneither inherit
norbeinherited.
5. Lian: in accordance with the Quran Surah 24:6-7 both the
motherandthefatherofthechilddisownedbythe latershall
notinheritthemselves.Soalsoarethechildandthedisowning
father.
6. Bastard:Achildbornoutoflawfulmarriagecannotinheritthe
fatherbutonlythemother.
24.NarratedbyAbuDaud25.InheritanceinIslambyAbuIsam,P.33,Opsit.
26
Acknowledgedrelations
“Islamic law allows the acknowledgement of paternity and once it
occurssuchanacknowledgementofpaternitywillestablishfullrights
of inheritance as between father and the acknowledged son as
againstallotherrelations”.See“Verma”opcitinRuxton.
Thisisbecausethepersonsoacknowledgedhereisofbloodrelation.
SHARES,THEIRPROPORTIONSANDBENEFICIARIES.
Therearetwoclassesofsharesandsharersnamely;Faraidand
Asabaor“Far’D”andSI’B.
Inheritanceby“FarD”istheshareprescribedintheHolyQuran
while inheritanceby “SI’B” is the fact of distributingwhat remains,
after all prescribed shares are distributed, among the closestmale
relativesofthedeceased.26
Inheritance by “SI’B”means the inheritor is not among those
whowereprescribedintheQuran.
26.AbuIsam.Ibid,P.13
27
“FURUD/FARAID”HEIRS
The Prophet (PBUH) said, “Give the Faraid to thosewho are
entitledtoreceivethem.Then,whateverremainsshouldbegivento
theclosestmalerelativeofthedeceased(FathuBari,12/11)27.
Faraidthereforeconnotesfixedpercentageofanestatedueto
individual heirs as done by Allah’s injunctions in the Holy Quran
Surah4verses11,12and174.
There are six sharers under this class namely; a half (1/2); a
fourth(1/4);aneight(1/8);athird(1/3);atwothird(2/3)andasixth
(1/6).
Thetablebelowshowstheabovefractionsthesharersandthe
basisoftheirallottedshares.
FRACTION SHARER(S) BASISOFSHARES
½ a. Husband
b. Onlydaughter
c. Onlyson’s
daughter.
Inabsenceofanychildbywife
Inabsenceofbrothertoagnatise
her.
No direct son of the deceased.
Nobrothertoagnatisethisson’s
27.FathuBari,12/11
28
d. Fullsister
e. Consanguinesister
daughter.
No child or grandchild of the
deceased to bar her. No other
sisterorbrotherof equal status.
No father or grandfather of the
deceased.
Sameasfullsisterabove.
¼ a. Husband
b. Wife/Wives
Inabsenceofchildorgrandchild.
Inabsenceofchildorgrandchild.
1/8 Wife/Wives In presence of child or
grandchild.
1/3 a. Mother
b. Pluralityofuterine
brothers and
sisters or
combination of
In absence of child and
grandchild. In absence of more
thanonebrotherorsister.
In absence of father, child and
provided they are not less than
two.
29
both.
2/3 a. Daughters
b. Son’sdaughters
c. Fullsisters
Inabsenceofbrothertoagnatise
them.
Inabsenceofdirectmalechildor
grandchild.
Inabsenceofbrothertoagnatise
them, absence of deceased’s
fathertobarthem.
1/6 a. Father
b. Mother
c. Son’sdaughter
d. Grandfather
e. Consanguinesister
f. Maternal
grandmother
g. Uterine brother/
sister
In presence of son, daughter orson’sson.
Presenceofsonorson’sson.
Presenceofdaughter.
Presenceofadaughter.
Presenceofgermanesister
Maternal/paternalgrandmother’sco-sharers.
In absence of son, truegrandfatherordaughter.
30
‘Furu’D’ people are ten:Husband,Wife (orwives),Mother, Father,
Grandfather, GrandMother(s), Daughters, the son’s daughters, full
sistersandthemother’schildren.
LetuslookathoweachFar’D’sshareisadministered:
i. Husband’s inheritance. The husband inherits from his wife’s
estateonehalf(1/2)ofherlegacyifhesurvivesherandshe
has no childrenof her ownnor children’s son(s)where the
latewifehaschildrenorsonsliving,thestakeofshareforthe
husband returns to ¼. This is whether they belong to the
surviving husband or previous one. See Quran 4:12, Allah
said,
ولكم نصف ما ترك أزواجكم إن لم یكن لھن ولد فإن كان لھن ولد فلكم
ا تركتم بع مم ة یوصین بھا أو دین ولھن الر ا تركن من بعد وصی بع مم الر
ة إن لم یكن لكم ولد ف ا تركتم من بعد وصی من مم إن كان لكم ولد فلھن الث
توصون بھا أو دین وإن كان رجل یورث كاللة أو امرأة ولھ أخ أو أخت
دس فإن كانوا أكثر من لث من فلكل واحد منھما الس ذلك فھم شركاء في الث
علیم حلیم وهللا ة من هللا ة یوصى بھا أو دین غیر مضار وصی بعد وصی
"Inthatwhichyourwife’s leave,yourshare isa
halfiftheyhavenochild,butiftheyliveachild,
yougoaforthofthatwhichtheyleave"
31
The following can illustrate how a husband’s share in inheritance
couldbeadministeredinIslam.E.g:
a. Awomandied and left behind ahusbandand a father.Here
the husband gets half (1/2) of the propertywhile the father
takestherest.
b. A situation where the woman has a son with her husband
surviving her, the husband takes a fourth (1/4). The surviving
son is of secondary affinity so his existence reduces the
husbandsharefrom½to¼
ii. The wife’s inheritance: the wife’s share if she survives her
husbandis¼wherethehusbandleftnoissue(s)and1/8(one
eight)ofthelegacywhereherhusbandleftissues.TheQuran
insurah4:12
"…in that which you leave, their (your wives)share is a fourth if you live no child, but if youleave a child, they get an eight (1/8) of thatwhichyouleave…"
Thefollowingexamplescouldsufficetoshowhowawife’ssharein
inheritanceisadministered.Amandiedandleftbehindawifeand
hisfather.Thewifetakes¼ofthepropertybecausethereisnoHeir
or no son by the husband. But where a son(s) exist, her share
32
becomes1/8accordingtoQuranicallotment.Wherethewife’sare
more,theyco-share.
iii. Mother’sinheritance:mothersbeingaQuranicsharerinherita
third(1/3),asixth(1/6)and/ortheremainingthird(1/3).The
motherinherit1/3inthreeways:
a. Wherethedeceasedsonordaughterhasnoissue.
b. Where the deceased although having no issue, still does
nothavebrothersorsisters,shestillretainsher1/3share.
c. She inherit again the remaining1/3where the inheritors
besideherare:
i. Husband,motherandFather,and
ii. Wheretheinheritorsarewife,motherandfather.
No sharer excludes themother. The last discussion is basedon the
logic of Ummayriyyah based on the independent reasoning
propounded by Umar bn Al – Khattab (may Allah be pleased with
him).
Example:Awomandiedandleftbehindherhusband,amother,and
a father. The inheritance is divided into six Qirats (measures). First
the husband takes ½ of 6 = 3 then the mother takes 1/3 of the
33
remainingthreeQiratwhichis1/3whilethefathertakestheresttwo
Qirat.
iv. Father’s inheritance: A father being among the Heirs who
inherit by ‘Far’D’ can inherit by Fard, Si’B and by both at a
time.Wherethedeceasedsonordaughterhasmale issues,
his share is 1/6. That iswhy inQuran 4:11Allah says, “For
parents,1/6 shareof inheritance is toeach if thedeceased
left children”. Father inherit by Ta’sib,where the deceased
didnotleavebehindanysonorsonsfromsecondaryaffinity,
thenafterthemother’sshareof1/3istaken,theremainder
2/3 goes to the father. See the same Verse 11 of Surah 4
whereAllahsays,
كر مثل حظ األنثیین فإن كن في أوالدكم للذ نساء فوق اثنتین یوصیكم هللا
فلھن ثلثا ما ترك وإن كانت واحدة فلھا النصف وألبویھ لكل واحد منھما
ھ ا ترك إن كان لھ ولد فإن لم یكن لھ ولد وورثھ أبواه فألم دس مم الس
ة یوصي بھا أو دین الث دس من بعد وصی ھ الس لث فإن كان لھ إخوة فألم
كان إن هللا ھم أقرب لكم نفعا فریضة من هللا آباؤكم وأبناؤكم ال تدرون أی
علیما حكیما
“…ifhe leftnochildren,andhisparentsare theonlyheirs,
themotherhasathird.”
34
The following examples could illustrate it: Inheritance by Far’D, the
fatherinherit1/6whereasonofsecondaryaffinityorson’ssonexist.
When the son’s daughter survives her father and the father of this
deceased son also survived him, the surviving father inherit 1/6 by
Far’dwhileafterthedaughter’s½istaken,theremaindergoesback
tothefatheragainassharebySi’B.Thefatherremainsasharerinall
thesecases.Noexistenceofany issuecandeprivehimofanyofhis
shares,whenSi’Bshareisdeprived,hereturnstohis1/6.
v. Son’s inheritance: it shouldbenoted that“Son”asaprincipal
sharer is not mentioned directly in the list of heirs by the
Quran although son is themost important heir among the
childrenmentionedbytheQuran.HolyprophetMuhammad
(PBUH)said,“whateverisleftaftergivingawaytheshareto
themandatoryheirgoestotheson”.28
It shouldbe recollected that themandatory sharers include
the son, so where all have taken their shares, whatever
remains as residue is again given to the son. See Quran
Chapter4:12.
Others are the grandfathers and the grandmother’s
inheritancewiththefollowingexamples:
28.Bukhari,Kitab-ul-Faraid
35
vi. Grandfather:Hisposition issimilar tothatof fatheras longas
thereexistnonewhocandeprivehim, suchasexistenceof
the actual father of the deceased. Automatically the
deceasedfathershalldeprivethegrandfatheroftherightto
inherithisgrandson.
vii. Grandmother’s inheritance: To administer an estatewhere
the grandmother survives the grandson, she cannot inherit
where the mother is still alive. The grandmother is not
amongtheprescribedheirs.
Sons:
Whenasonisalonewithoutanycompetitorhetakesthewhole
estate butwhere parents of the father,wife, father or grandfather
survive,thesontakeswhatremainsafterthesemighthavehadtheir
shares.Ason’ssontakestheplaceofthedeceasedsonwhenthereis
no son.Where thereare sonsanddaughters, theywill share in the
ratio of two to one (2:1) i.e themale taking twowhile the female
takesone.
Daughters:
Whereonlythedaughtersurvives,shetakeshalfof theestate
butiftheyaremorethanonetheyshareinthe2/3(twothirdsofthe
36
estate). This is a very serious revolution under the prophet in the
sixth Century AD when womenfolk were liberated by this singular
divinelaw.Hereisthestoryanditrunsthus:
"The wife of Sa’ad bn al-Rabi came to theprophet with her two daughters and said, “O!Prophet these are the daughters of Sa’ad Al-Rabi.TheirfatherdiedaMartyr,inthebattleofUhud. But their uncle has taken Sa’ad’s estateand they cannot marry unless they haveproperty"
Itwasafterthisreport,theverseofinheritancewasrevealedto
ProphetMuhammad(PBUH).HeimmediatelysentforSa’adandtold
himaboutthedivinelaw.Hesaid,“GivethetwodaughtersofSa’ad
2/3of theestate,give theirmother1/8andkeep the remainder to
yourself”.Inthisrevelation,womenanddaughterswhowerepartof
theestatemeant for inheritance in thePre-IslamicArabiaandeven
todayinpartofNigeriantraditionsandcustomsbecameliberatedby
Islam.Theyweremade to co-sharewith theirmencounter-parts in
anygivenlegacy.
Granddaughter:
Intheabsenceofdaughter,theson’sdaughterandwherethey
aretwoormoretheyaretreatedasdaughters.Wherethereexist,a
37
daughterandason’sdaughter,thedaughtertakeshalfoftheestate
while1/6 is fortheson’sdaughter.Wheretheyaremorethanone,
they still co-share in the one sixth (1/6).Where the daughters are
twoormore,theson’sdaughtershallreceivenothingunlessthereis
with her a brother. It is only by this “Ta’asib” she can share the
residuarywithbothonthebasisof2:1ratio.
Sisters:
Asistergermanei.efullsistertake½ofanestatebutifbrothers
exist alongside with them, they share the property accordingly i.e
maletakingdoubleoffemale.Wherethesisterexistswithdaughter
ofthedeceased,thedaughterfirsttakes½or2/3iftheyaretwoor
morewhilethesisterstaketheresiduaryifany,i.eAsaba.29
Where thereexist, the father, thedaughteror son, the sisters
are excluded unless there is a male with consanguine sisters, it is
then they take the residue. Full sister usually eliminate the
consanguinesisterifthereisnomale(Asaba)toretainthem.
BrothersandSistersUterine:
Inthecaseofbrothersandsistersuterine,theshareis1/6and
wheretheyaremore,theshareis1/3,allofthemhavingequalshare.
29.JusticeYunusAbdallah.“SuccessionunderIslamicLaw:Issues,ControversiesandSolution”.Page136
38
However,wherethereexistafather,ason,ason’sson,thepaternal
grandfather of the deceased, the uterine brothers and sisters are
excluded.
BrotherGermaneandConsanguine.Whereeitherofthesetwoexists
alone, and no other relative the brother germane or the brother
consanguine takes thewhole estate butwhere the two co-exist or
more the germane brother excludes the consanguine, where there
are other sharers along with the brother, either consanguine or
germane,thebrotheralwayswaitfortheresidue.Theabovedecision
is derived from the ruling that preference is given to the full blood
overthehalfblood.
ASABAHOR“TA’SIB
Thisconnotesresiduaryheirs.Allah,(SWA)dividedinheritorsof
estate into two groups. The group of six whose shares in the
inheritanceare fixedwhichwehavealreadydiscussedandreferred
toas ‘Far’D”.Theothergroupsare those that theremainingestate
after the fixed shares is given (such heirs are known asASABAH).
This group inherits by Ta’sib. “Asabah” is the plural of Asibwhile
Ta’sib is a noun form from the verb Asaba, Ya’sib means “to
39
surroundandhold”.WhenwehearUsbaturRijalinArabic,itmeans
“a group of men who surround, help and protect each other”.30
AsabathereforeconnotesResiduaryheirsasithasitsrootinHadith
which says: “Apportion the specific shares of the estate to those
heirsentitledtothemandwhateverportionsremainthereofshould
betakenbyresiduarymaleheirs”.31
Asabaareofthreekinds:-
1. Asababy itself:Asabahbytheselfmeanseverymalewhohas
no female link between him and the deceased. If there are
fixed sharers, he takes the residue.Where there are no fixed
sharers,hetakesalltheestate.Ifthefixedsharerstakeallthe
inheritanceas theirshares, theAsabahhas lost.ByTa’sib, the
mostclosetothedeceasedshallbetheoneto inherit.Where
they aremany, the closest relative inherits. If they are equal
status in relation to the deceased, those who have the
strongesttietothedeceasedshallinherithim.Wheretheyare
equal inkinshipandstrengthoftietothedeceased,theynow
inherittogetherbyTa’sib.Exampleofthiscasecouldbe:Aman
left behind three children and four full brothers, the children
30.“InheritanceinIslam”byAbuIsam,OpsitPage2631.Al–MawarithFilShar’iatsIslamiyyah,page33
40
taking 2/3 of the propertywhile the residue goes to the four
fullbrotherswhichtheyaretoshareequally.
2. The second group is ‘Asabah’ by others: for example, any
femalewhose share is 1/6among the fixed sharers can share
theresiduebytheexistenceofAsibwhoismaleandwhoisof
equal rank in relationship with the deceased. The female e.g
son’s daughter, full sister or daughter, if there is a son, son’s
sonorabrotheramongstthem,thefemalescannot inheritby
Ta’sib with the existence of the male Asabah. This group
inheritsthereforeas‘Asabahbyothers’.
3. Asabahwithothers:Inthiscase,fixedsharerslikedaughteror
son’s daughter are in existence with other relatives like full
sistersorhalf-sisters.Whenthefixedsharerslikethedaughter
exist,shenowstandsinthepositionofAsabahtomakethefull
sisters or the half-sisters have share in the residue of the
estate.Inthiscase,itistheheirswhoselinkdoesnothaveany
female linkwith thedeceased thathavehelped theothers to
inheritbyTa’sib.
a. Evidence for ‘Asabah’ by the self can be found in surah
4:176,seealso4:11
41
b. Asabahbyothers.E.g,amandiedand leftbehindawife,a
son, and two daughters. The wife gets one eight (1/8)
because of the existence of an heir from the secondary
affinity, the rest goes to the son and daughters, with a
doubleportiontothemale.
c. Asabawith others. Example: Aman died and left behind a
mother, two daughters and a full sister. In this case, the
motheris1/6,thetwodaughters2/3andthefullsistertakes
theresidue.Theexistenceofthesisterhaveshownthatno
female link between her and her brother. So, she has an
AsabahshareswithotherAsabahs.
Issues:
Some social critics criticize the issue of making female
daughterstakinghalfofthatofmale.Somecallitinequalityamongst
genders.ManyIslamicScholarshavetriedtoexplainthestandpoint
ofIslam.
First of all, the society that Islamwishes to establish amongst
humans must be understood and the duties of individual human
speciesbeproperlyunderstood.Themale isgiventheresponsibility
to maintain the household. All necessities of the home are to be
42
providedbythemaleandeventhefemalememberofthefamilyisto
becateredforbythemale.
When the femalemember in an Islamic family is in her home
she ismaintained according to lawby themalemember andwhen
she marries, her responsibility transfers to her husband in her
matrimonialhome.Herfeeding,clothing,shelteretc.istobecatered
forbyhermalecounterpart.Inthiswise,sheisalwaysunderthecare
of males. If she returns from her husband’s place to her parent’s
home,themalerelationstheretakecareofherneeds.ThisisIslamic
wayoflife.
Unlikeourpresentdaylife,whereindividualtendencyoverrules
our lives and the tendency to involve women in the feeding of
household, provision for the needs of the children, sharing in
providing feeding for the familyetcare the issuesof theday. Islam
gavethefemaletherighttohaveaccesstoeducation,touseherskill,
tocontributeherquotatosocietalupliftmentbutnotthatshewillbe
victimized.Thatiswhythemanisgivenmoreresponsibility.Evenin
hisownshare,thefemalemustbemaintainedanditisnotarulethat
hershareintheestatecouldbeusedforupkeepofthefamily.
43
Ifwegobacktotheissueofinheritance,judgingbythecaseof
thewife of Sa’ad al-Rabi and the uncle of her daughters, one finds
thatwomenwere treated equally. Sa’ad’swife saw the heavy load
confronting her in themaintenance of her daughters who just lost
theirfatherandbreadwinnerofthefamily,theunclefollowingPre-
Islamic customdecided tousurpall theestateandAllah solved the
issue through the revelation. In this case, the two daughters share
was 2/3 of the estate while the mother’s share was 1/8 of the
propertyandtheremainderwenttotheuncle.Daughtershad16/24,
motherhad3/24while theunclehad5/24. In this calculation,only
the femaleshave themajority share.No irregularityhereand itdid
notprevent theuncle frombeing theguardianof thesechildren. In
some cases we see where both parents (father and mother) have
equalshareof1/6ofanestateeach.AlltheseshowhowIslamcared
forfemalerights.
Islamrulesthatbeforemarriage,themanmustpaydowryand
withoutdowry,nopropermarriage in Islam. Thisdowry is anasset
anditisanexclusivepropertyforthewoman.Itcouldbeusedasher
capital for future business. Unlike the woman, the man is saddled
withmanyobligationsand liabilitiestoshoulderforthegoodofthe
household.
44
In administering estate and succession in Islamic law the
followingissueslateremanated.Theseissuesincludethedoctrineof
AWL,thedoctrineofRaddandthecaseofMafquud(missingperson)
andthatoftheHermaphroditeandtheFoetusetc.
Doctrine of AWL: Awl means proportionate reduction. This
principle came into being when Khalifah Ali bn Abi Talib was
deliveringalecture(FridayKhutbah)inMedina.HewasonthePulpit
(Minbar) and a question by amuslimwomanwas asked and that’s
why thisnarrationwas referred tousuallyas theMinbariyyahcase.
She asked Sayyidinah Ali, “what is the wife’s share in inheritance
when her deceased husband left behind both parents and his two
daughters” Ali according to this narration promptly answered that
thewife’sshareinsteadof1/8nowbecomes1/9.
Undernormalcircumstances,thetwoparentsareQuranicheirs
so they have 1/6 each, with the 1/6 eachway, the estate remains
2/3.Twodaughtersshareshallbe2/3oftheremainderthusmaking
the whole estate exhausted. Now the “wife” who was among the
survivors isaQuranicheirwhocannotbeexcluded.To letherhave
hersharetheLCMdenominationof24hastobe increasedto27as
theprincipleofAWL.32
32.UstazYunusAbdullah.“SuccessionunderIslamicLaw,Issues,ControversiesandSolutions”.Page138–139
45
AWL isadevelopmentinIslamiclawmeanttodealwithissues
not covered by the primary sources of Islamic Law, e.g where the
estate of a wife is to be shared by the following successors, a
husbandandtwosistersundernormalcircumstances,thehusband,a
“FarD”sharer,shalltake½oftheestateashissharewhilethesisters
share, according to the Quran, is 2/3. What happens here is the
existenceofshortageandnotresidue.Whichevershareonewantsto
start with there shall be shortage in meeting the Quranic
prescription. This issue or challenge started under Caliph Abubakar
As-Sadeeq and with consultation with some of the Sahaba, they
arrived at the doctrine of AWL. This doctrine is the idea of
maintaining the original fractional share and increasing the
denominator.33
Ar–Radd:meaningproportionalreturnorredistributionofthe
surplusoftheestatewhereonlyQuranicsharersexistandtheytake
their allotted shares and the estate still remains, that residue
accordingtoMalikiSchoolshouldbereturnedtothepublictreasury
forpublicusewhileotherschoolsviewedthat itshouldbereturned
to the existing sharers if there are no agnatic or residue sharers
available instead of Baitil-Mal. This redistribution theory is only
33.“ThePrinciplesandPracticeofSuccessionunderIslamicLaw”byM.A.Ambali;page144–145
46
applicable to Zhawilarham (blood relatives of the deceasedperson)
asthewifeandhusbandarenotparticipating.
IssueofFoetus:Awomanmaybeunderpregnancywhenshe
losesherhusband.Asnooneknowswhatgender thechildmaybe
andwhetheritmaybeastill–born,itisassumedthatthechildwill
be born amale.When the estate is administeredupon, the Foetus
shareshallbeasharetoamaleheir.Ifperchance,thechildturnsto
be female the share of female is resorted to i.e half of it and the
otherhalfistakenbacktotheothersharersproportionately.34
However,themostfavouredviewoftheMalik’sSchoolonthisissue
isthatthedistributionoftheestatebesuspendedpendingthebirth
ofthechild.35
Issue of Al – Mafquud (Missing person): Where a person
disappears without being heard of for a long time and after many
inquiries no news about his where about, such a person could be
declaredmissingbythecourtoflaw.
Twoissuesmustbeestablishedbeforedeclaringanything.
1. Itmustbeestablishedthatthereisnoinformationwhat-so-
everabouthim.
34.UstazYunusAbdallah,Page140Ibid35Doi,A.I.;“Sharia,TheIslamicLaw”.www.asmislamicbooks.com;(ND)P.273.
47
2. Manyyearsmighthavepassedandstillno information.The
timeallowedbyMalikischooltoelapsebeforeonecouldbe
declared missing is seventy (70) years while other Sunni
schools unanimously agreed that the year should be
between ninety (90) years and one hundred and twenty
(120) years before such declaration. In Islamic law of
inheritance, it is after this that themissing person’s estate
could be shared amongst his inheritors.Where themissing
person (Al – Mafqud) is the inheritor, his share shall be
reservedtillheisfoundandifhecouldnomorebefound,his
owninheritorstakesoverhisshares.36
Hermaphrodite: A great sign of Allah’s power of creation is the
creation of human species known as ‘Hermaphrodite’. This sort of
human being is neither a complete male nor female. Nobody can
decidetowhichgenderthisspeciebelongsuntiltheageofpuberty.
When inheritance of an estate is being administered, the Jurist
viewedthatitshouldbecountedasmale.Todetectwhichgender,if
itisfoundthatitmenstruatesthroughthefemaleorganandthereis
femininegrowthofthebreast, it isthenconsideredasfemale. Ifon
theotherhand, itshowssignsofmanhoodi.e.havemoustacheand
changeinthevoice,thenitismale.Asfortheshareofinheritance,if
36.See:ColsonOpsitpage198
48
itturnstobefemale,halfoftheshareallottedshallnowbegivento
himwhile theotherhalf be sharedbetween theother inheritors in
accordancewiththeirdueshares.37
Conclusion:
In the foregoing pages and paragraphs of this discourse, we
haveattempted toexplain the conceptof administrationof estates
andsuccessionunderIslamicLaw.
We particularly tried to look at the primary sharers of
inheritancewhoarereferredtoasAshabal-Furud(prescribedheirs)
andhowtheirstatusandexistenceaffectinheritanceasaninstitution
in Islam. We also looked at the institution of Asabah (agnatised
inheritors in Islam)andhowthesegroupsaffect Islamic inheritance.
Otherissuespertainingtohomicidewhereapropositusgotkilledby
a legal inheritor (a successor), amissing inheritor and/or amissing
propositus, a case ofHermaphrodite or lian (a disowned child by a
father by way of legal oath), illegitimacy, slavery and master
propositus etc.All these listed are relevant categories of sharers of
theEstatethatmaybeleftbehindbytheirdeceasedlegator.
37:AbuIsam,Ibid
49
On the whole, what we refer to as estate and succession in
Islam call for serious studies by all stakeholders with a view to
understanding what constitute the content and context of
inheritance in Islam. This is because no family is exempted from
death and what prevails after. Therefore, without any clear
understanding of Sharia Law on administration of estate and
succession, an inheritor may be misguided to take a share either
belowormorethantheprescribedshareforhim/herbyAllahwhich
consequenceisverygraveinlinewithSurahNisa’iverse10
“Verilythosewhounjustlyeatupthepropertyof
orphans,theyeatupbutfireintotheirbelies,and
theywillbeburntintheblazingfire”.(Q4:10)
For this reason, the Almighty Allah decreed that estates left
behindbythedeceasedMuslimsbesharedforthebenefitofitslegal
inheritorsandintherightquantity.
Undertheissueoflegalexclusionfrominheritance,weseethat
in cases concerning differences in religion, since a non-muslimmay
notallowMuslimtosucceedhimasheirandviceversa,theProphet
(PBUH) was reported to have even said, “Neither does a Muslim
inheritanon-believernordoesanon-believerinheritamuslim”.This
50
is the Islamic rule on Estate and succession. Somenotable scholars
likeDr.Tabi’uhold that“Thebasisof rulesgoverning inheritance in
Islamiscenteredonreciprocity”.Thatistosaythatinlinewiththe
tenetsofIslamicpersonallaw,anon-muslimmaynotallowamuslim
heirtosucceedhim/herorviceversa.
Also,amuslimchildorsonwhoconvertedtoChristianityorany
otherreligionceases,accordingtoIslamiclawofinheritance,tobea
heir to the estate of a muslim father/mother who died a muslim.
Similarly,amuslimparentcannotlegallyinherithissonifthesondies
as a Christian. The only exception where each could succeed in
either’sestateisthroughwill.
In Islam,amuslim is free tomakeawill tonon-inheritor(s)of
his/herestateprovidedsuchawillislessornotmorethanonethird
(1/3)ofthetotalestateanditisalsonotatthedetriment(expense)
of the legal inheritors. That is why the Islamic law of succession
insists that after the primary obligations have been made, the
remaining estate (net-estate) however the portion is (small or big)
must be shared amongst its inheritors (successors). One very
importantmeasuretobetakenbytheAdministrator(s)istheproper
valuationoftheEstatebeforesharing.
51
Fromtheforegoingdiscussion,it isclearthatadministrationof
Estate and succession in Islamic law takes into cognisance issues
pertaining to the rights of women as heirs in the sharing of
inheritance in Islam. In comparison therefore with other existing
laws, both old and new, Islamic lawof inheritance has proved that
Estate and Succession as part of human life needs fullmeasures to
tackle.Therefore,theneedtoacquiretherequisiteknowledgewhich
is contained in the Qur’an and Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad
(P.B.U.H)cannotbeoveremphasized.
I thank this august and distinguished audience for exercising
patience to listen to me despite the voluminous pages of this
discourse. As I have said earlier,where I strayed, do please forgive
me.
WassalamalaykumwarRahmatullahiWabarakatuhu.
52
FORFURTHERREADING
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Obeidi.
Ambali,M.A.(1998).“ThePracticeofMuslimFamilyLawinNigeria”.
Zaria:TamazaPublishingCompanyLimited.
AminatBashirAlabasu(Mrs)(2010).“ShariaLegalSystemVis-à-visHuman
rights Norms: A Comparative Harmonious Analysis”. NJI LawJournal.
Al-Maslaha:“IssuesAffectingIslamandMuslims”Vol.4,2007–2008
JournalsofLawandReligion.NAMLAS,UniversityofIlorinChapter.
Doi, A. I.; “Sharia, The Islamic Law”. www.asmislamicbooks.com; (ND)P.273.
Fiqh Al – Sunnah Vol. 3 Page 498.
Hajiya Sariyu balogun – Abdul Majeed. “A Glimpse at Inheritance”.Oshogbo.
JusticeYunusAbdullah(2002).“SuccessionunderIslamicLaw,Issues,
ControversiesandSolutions”.ALectureNote.(Unpublished).
Muhammed, S. O. (2005). “Inheritance As It Affect You”. Being a
Ramadan Lecture Delivered Under the Auspices of AL – Habibiyyah Islamic Movement, Abuja.
Sahih al – Bukhari, Kitabul Tafsir 101.
Sunan Ibn Majah