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Is it permissible for a woman to be an executor (wasiyyah) and guardian (waliyyah) over a minor, to safeguard their wealth, manage their affairs, and represent them before the public and private, in the presence of paternal brothers or agnates?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Brothers and sisters have no guardianship over their brother's wealth. Guardianship belongs to the father, then his appointed guardian, then the ruler. There is disagreement regarding the grandfather and the mother. The four madhhabs agree that brothers are not guardians over their minor brother's wealth. If there is no guardian, the matter is referred to the Sharia judge to appoint a guardian for the child. As for the hadith, "A people who entrust their affairs to a woman will never succeed," it applies to general leadership and not to the mother's or sister's guardianship over their children or minor brothers. The hadith "deficient in intellect and religion" does not prevent a woman from managing her own wealth or from being a guardian over her child's or brother's wealth if appointed by the ruler.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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