Inheritance

Q: My late Dad had left behind an Islamic Will. Through the process my elder brother and I had been appointed as executors of his estate.

Question: Can we (the executors) make a unilateral decision on behalf of the other heirs to ensure a fair and equitable resolution to the issues plaguing the sale of the property.

Context to the question: My dad left one property as part of his estate. Its structure is such that it is impractical to split the property relative to each heirs proportionate share. Once we have determined a value of the property (formal process) can we as the executors unilaterally make payment to the other heirs in proportion to their inheritance (Islamic share)?

Q: My father has passed away few days before and I want to ask you about distribution of inheritance. My father passed away leaving behind:

- One wife

- Three daughters

- Both parents have already passed away

- He had 3 siblings and they all passed away in my father's lifetime

- 1st elder sister who already passed away left behind 1 husband and 2 daughters

- 2nd elder brother who also passed away left behind 1 wife, 1 son and 2 daughters

- 3rd younger brother who left behind 1 wife, 3 daughters and 1 son.

In this case who will inherit and in what ratio? We are confused whether the nephews will also inherit or not. Please clear that. 

Q: My father in law, Mr. A has 6 daughters (all married). His late father had many properties which have not yet been distributed among his heirs due to some legal problems. Now Mr. A is not well. He has 4 questions:

1. Will Mr. A get his complete share as per shariah when the property is distributed?

2. If he passes away before the distribution, will his daughters get his complete share?

3. After his death, how will his property be shared among his heirs?

4. Can he make a will giving everything to his daughters now?

Q: My father has passed away and left 1 wife and 3 daughters. His parents and all his sibling had passed away in his lifetime. My father has 2 nephews from his brothers.

I want to know that my father has 1 house, 1 car and 2 bank accounts. My father bought a house with a joint name with my mother and he orally gifted that house to my mother in his life and same goes with the bank account. One account belongs to my father and that account was his salary account and another account was a joint account he made for my mother's use. In that account he used to transfer some of his salary to my mother in a joint account for monthly expenses.

So my question is that is the joint house and account also part of the inheritance? People are saying that he has a joint name on that house that's why it is also distributed equally. But in the case of the house he gifted the whole house to my mother orally in front of his daughters and in the case of bank accounts he only operates his account for my mother's use only.

Q: My father in law was alive when he distributed his property between his both sons. At that time, one daughter was married and she said that she does not want anything from her father's property. One daughter was unmarried and my father in law was unhappy with her so he didn't give her any right in his property.

The property of my father in law was divided between both his sons only. My father in law passed away some 14 years back and now the married daughter is asking for her share in the property which she refused when my father in law was alive.

My question is, does the married daughter have the right to ask for her share in the property now from her brothers?

Q: A non-Muslim woman owns a house in a non-Muslim country. When she passes away, the law of the land gives the entire house as inheritance to her Muslim daughter, who is her only child. What should the Muslim daughter do with the house, given that a Muslim is not allowed to inherit from a non-Muslim in Islam? Should she give it to the state? Or should she give it to her non-Muslim aunts and uncles, even though these do not expect to get it? Or can she keep the house?

Q: What is the shar’ee ruling regarding inheritance between Muslims and non-Muslims? In other words, is it permissible for Muslims to inherit from non-Muslims and vice-versa? Similarly, will there be any difference in the ruling in a Muslim country and a non-Muslim country? Lately, I was informed by a friend that the law of Muslims and non-Muslims not inheriting from each other only applies in a Muslim country. My friend says that as far as a non-Muslim country is concerned, Muslims will inherit from non-Muslims but non-Muslims will not inherit from Muslims. Is this mas’alah correct? My friend had given some reference of a statement of Moulana Ashraf Ali Thaanwi (rahmatullahi alayh) mentioned in Imdaadul Ahkaam. Is this correct, that Hazrat Moulana Ashraf Ali Thaanwi (rahmatullahi alayh) had mentioned that Muslims residing in a non-Muslim country will inherit from the non-Muslims?

Q: Person A passed away. After this, Person B claims that Person A had done wasiyyah of part of his wealth to him. He brings two male witnesses.

My question is: Do these witnesses need to be upright in order for the wasiyyah to be valid? Or would they just have done tahammul of shahada, in which being upright is not a condition?

Q:

1. I have 3 brothers and 1 sister. Our estate was worked out on a percentage basis. The eldest brother getting the highest percentage and so on, and my sister was only given 1 percent. Is this distribution correct?

2. If not, then can mufti saheb please mention how the estate be distributed and how many shares will each heir receive. There are 4 brothers and 1 sister in total.

My father did not have any surviving parent neither a spouse.

3. Also, if the distribution that was done on percentage basis is not correct then one heir had taken the money of the other heir. So what should be done to rectify this?

Q: A man passed away leaving behind 1 sister, 2 daughters of his deceased brother, 1 daughter of his decseased sister and a few male cousins from his father's brothers. Does the daughters of his desceased brother inherit anything?