Wills, Grants, and Their Limitations in Inheritance Law
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Many inheritance disputes stem from confusion over three terms: inheritance, will, and gift. All three transfer property, but the laws and times are different โ and Islam regulates all three carefully. A gift is a gift made during life. A father may donate his assets to anyone while he is still healthy, including his children. However, Rasulullah shallallahu alaihi wa sallam ordered to be fair between children in giving - in an authentic hadith he refused to be a witness to the gift of a father who privileged only one child, and called it injustice. Unequal gifts often become embers of dispute that flare up even after the giver is gone. A will is a message for the transfer of assets that only takes effect after death. This is where two important limitations apply. First, a maximum bequest of one third of the inheritance - when Sa'ad bin Abi Waqqash's friend wanted to bequeath his wealth, the Prophet limited it to one third and said, "That third is already a lot. Indeed, leaving your heirs rich is better than leaving them poor begging." Second, there is no will for heirs: people who have already received a faraidh portion may not receive additional through a will, unless all the other heirs agree to do so. As for the inheritance itself, there is no personal will version of the "inheritance letter". Once someone dies, the share of each heir has been determined by Allah - not an area that can be controlled by the deceased during his lifetime. From this the lesson can be seen: grants provide freedom in life with conditions of justice; a will provides room for goodness for parties outside the heirs โ distant relatives, foster children, social institutions โ with a third fence; and faraidh protects the rights of the nuclear family from abuse. Three doors that complement each other, all lead to one thing: wealth moves without leaving scars.