Inheritance

Q: An old lady died. Before her death she said that all her gold ornaments should be given to a mosque. She has one elder and one younger brother. She used to take care of them. Now her brother and sister is financially suffering. The sister is a widow and 85 years old with no child and the brother is 70 years old with 3 daughters. Can her brother and sister take some amount of the jewellery for their living and medical expenses. How much can they take?

Q: My understanding is that at the time of death, any assets left behind by the deceased, e.g. a house, now belong to the heirs even though its not yet transfered onto their names from a legal perspective according to the country laws.

1. If they decide to sell the house or if one of the heirs wants to buy out the other heirs then would the wasiyat be paid on the money received from the sale of the house as well as money the deceased left behind or only on the money the deceased left behind.

2. Will the heir that buys out the other heirs still be entitled to their share.

Q: 

1. In a non-Muslim country, can a Muslim inherit from his non-Muslim relative? Please explain the Shar’ee ruling in the case where the non-Muslim relative left a will or did not leave a will.

2. I was informed that there is a fatwa attributed to Hazrat Moulana Thaanwi (rahimahullah) which says that it is permissible for Muslims to inherit from their non-Muslim relatives in India. Is this correct?

Q: If a person’s father passed away before his grandmother (i.e. Father’s mother) and the grandmother was inheriting from her grandmother will the grandsons inherit from the grandmothers estate while they are other brothers and sister of the father still living?

Q: Ebrahim and Qassim are brothers. They were married to two sisters. Ebrahim had a son, Ismail who got married to his cousin, Khadijah (Qassim’s daughter). They had 8 children. Ismail, the father passed away a long time ago. Thereafter 3 of the children, Omar, Husain and Zahra passed away before their mother. Now their mother passed away.

My question is, can the children of Omar, Husain and Zahra inherit from their grandmother? If they are not intitled to the inheritance, can they get anything via any other way since they looked after her quite a bit.

Q: A property (a piece of land) belonged to my grandfather. My father constructed a house on the land. Now both of them are not alive. Who will get the share of the rent? Are my fathers sisters eligible for the rent or only eligible for their share in of the land?

Q: If a woman passes away and leaves behind her son, her mother and brothers and sisters but no husband and father. Who will inherit and how will the shares be divided?

Q: My brother has gone away from the fold of Islam by having a girlfriend who is Christian Orthodox, committing zina, having a child out of wedlock and then saying that he will be become Christian for the sake of his child and girlfriend. He contacts my parents only when he wants some financial help otherwise he is not in contact with them or other family members on any regular basis. Whenever he does contact my family, we have always tried to remind him of Islam and Allah.

1. What does Shariah say for this matter with regards to his inheritance from my parents when they pass?

2. Should he be included in any will my parents make?

3. Does he have any right to claim inheritance from my parents if he is no longer Muslim?

4. Does my family have any responsibility or rights towards my brother if he claims to have forsaken Islam?

5. Should my family maintain contact with him or do we sever ties with him if he is no longer Muslim? 

Q:

1. If persons' A, B and C were going to inherit and person C decided that he didn't want his share, does his share go back into the "pot" and distributed accordingly between persons A and B or can person C instruct the executor as to how they want to receive that share?

2. When distributing the deceased's wasiyat for missed fasts, salaah, etc., to who can this money be given to? E.g Musjid, madrasah, Muslim organisations, poor Muslims, etc. What would be the best way to distribute it.

Q: What is the ruling after a person passes away regarding the marhooms clothes?