Died leaving a wife, 2 daughters, one full sister and one paternal cousin
Fatwa No: 272071

Question

Assalaamu ‘Alaykum; Please calculate the inheritance according to the following information -Does the deceased have male relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A cousin from a full paternal uncle) Number 1 -Does the deceased have female relatives who are entitled to inherit : (A daughter) Number 2 (A wife) Number 1 (A full sister) Number 1

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His Slave and Messenger.

If the deceased did not leave heirs entitled to inherit other than those mentioned, then the wife gets one-eighth of the estate as a fixed share because the deceased has children entitled to inherit. Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {But if you leave a child, then for them is an eighth of what you leave.}[Quran 4:12]

The two daughters get two-thirds of the estate as a fixed share; the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, gave the two daughters of Sa‘d ibn Ar-Rabee‘ two-thirds of his estate. Please refer to Fatwa 259957.

The deceased’s full sister gets the remainder of the estate by Ta‘seeb (i.e. by virtue of having a paternal relation with the deceased and not having an allotted share, so she gets what is left after the allotted shares have been distributed).

The full sisters of a deceased person are treated as ‘Asabah (i.e. paternal relatives entitled to inherit what remains after other heirs get their fixed shares) in this case. Ibn ‘Aasim underlined in his poem Tuhfat Al-Hukkaam that the deceased’s full sisters are entitled to the rest of the estate by virtue of Ta‘seeb in case the deceased has a daughter or a number of daughters (only).

The full cousin has no share in the estate because he is entirely excluded by the presence of the deceased’s full sister with the two daughters.

Therefore, the estate should be divided into twenty four shares; the two daughters get two-thirds (sixteen shares), each eight shares; the wife gets one-eighth (three shares); and the rest of the shares is for the full sister.

It should be noted that the division of inheritance is a serious and complex issue. It is not enough to settle for seeking a Fatwa to be issued according to the information given by the questioner. Instead, you should refer the case to Sharee‘ah court for investigation. Perhaps other eligible heirs who are entitled to inherit would be discovered in the process. Moreover, perhaps the deceased has left a will or was liable for debts or any other obligations of which the heirs are not aware. It is well-known that the settlement of debts and the other liabilities should be given priority to the right of the heirs in the estate. Therefore, you should not distribute the estate without referring the case to a Sharee‘ah court, if available, in order to secure the interests of the living and the dead alike.

Allaah Knows best.

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