How is the estate of a deceased wife distributed, who has gold and private property, and has two sisters, a mother, and a husband who is still alive, and owes a debt to one person?
The summary of the fatwa is that scholars differed concerning the inheritance of a killer by mistake. The majority hold that he does not inherit, while the Malikis hold that he inherits, but not the blood money (diyya). We have favored the Maliki opinion.
According to the Maliki school:
The daughter who died before her parents: Her parents inherit from her. The mother gets one-third, and the father gets the remainder. The wife: Her wealth is divided among her heirs: her mother gets one-sixth (due to the presence of multiple sisters), her husband gets one-half, and the two sisters get two-thirds. The issue of 'awl (increase in the shares) is from six to eight. Her debt must be paid before the division of the inheritance.
As for the majority opinion:
The daughter (the questioner's brother's daughter): Her mother inherits one-third from her estate if she has no siblings, and the remainder goes to the closest male agnate heirs (her father does not inherit because he caused the death). The wife: Her estate is divided among her heirs: her mother gets one-sixth (due to the presence of multiple sisters), the two sisters get two-thirds, and the remainder goes to the closest male agnate heirs (her husband does not inherit because he caused the death).
We caution the questioner that matters of inheritance are complex and critical, and they should be referred to Sharia courts for investigation before division.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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