When a Legitimate Right Becomes Social Strife

Inheritance is a precise divine system established by Islam to ensure the fair and organized transfer of wealth between individuals. The Holy Quran details the rules of inheritance with great precision, and the noble Sunnah contains many directives emphasizing the importance of promptly distributing the estate to its rightful heirs to avoid any delays that could lead to injustice or disputes among them.

However, reality sometimes witnesses delays in this distribution, which may result from some heirs' desire for personal gain from the estate at the expense of others. This leads to severe consequences that are not limited to financial aspects but extend to legal, social, and psychological dimensions.

The Legal Framework and Islam's Emphasis on Prompt Distribution of Estates

Islam urges expediting the payment of debts, the execution of wills, and the distribution of inheritance immediately upon the death of the deceased. No one is permitted to prevent heirs from receiving their shares or to procrastinate in distributing them without a legitimate reason or the consent of all heirs. This is due to the corruption that results from delays. Allah Almighty says:

“These are the limits of Allah, and whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger will be admitted by Him to gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding eternally therein. And that is the great success. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger and transgresses His limits – He will admit him to a Fire, abiding eternally therein, and he will have a humiliating punishment.” (An-Nisa: 13-14)

This shows the importance of adhering to the laws of inheritance, and that exceeding or delaying them is considered a transgression of Allah's limits.

Furthermore, it was reported from the Prophet, peace be upon him, what emphasizes the necessity of expediting the division of the estate. Abu Hurairah, may Allah be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "The soul of a believer is suspended by his debt until it is paid off." (1)

Although this hadith is not directly about inheritance, it highlights the importance of clearing the deceased's liabilities before burial. Inheritance is a right of the heirs that is established for them after the death of their inheritor. Heirs are responsible for clearing the deceased's liabilities by distributing the inheritance, setting aside the will's share, and paying off related debts, even if these debts are rights of the heirs themselves. (2)

Likewise, expediting the distribution of inheritance falls under the general principle of fulfilling rights and returning trusts to their rightful owners, which Allah Almighty urged in His saying: "Indeed, Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due." (An-Nisa: 58)

Legal Consequences of Delaying Inheritance Distribution

1. Sin incurred by those who withhold inheritance: Delaying the distribution of inheritance without a rightful cause is considered consuming people's wealth unjustly. Allah Almighty has forbidden this in His saying: "And do not consume one another's property unjustly." (Al-Baqarah: 188). This is one of the major sins forbidden by Islam. The true owners of the inheritance are the heirs, and withholding it from them is a clear injustice. The perpetrator bears the burden of this sin.

It was narrated in the noble hadith from Abu Hurairah that the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "Whoever cuts off an inheritance that Allah and His Messenger have ordained, Allah will cut off his inheritance from Paradise." (3) This means that whoever deprives an heir of their rightful inheritance, which Allah and His Messenger have ordained, Allah Almighty will punish them by depriving them of their inheritance in Paradise on the Day of Judgment. This is a severe punishment, indicating the seriousness of this act.

2. Hindering the interests of heirs: Some heirs may be in dire need of their share of the inheritance to meet their basic needs, pay their debts, get married, or invest. Delaying the distribution deprives them of these interests and may even disrupt their lives.

3. Heirs' right to financial compensation for delayed division: The procrastination and refusal of whoever holds the estate to divide it takes the ruling of a usurper exploiting a usurped item. (4) According to the Shafi'i school, "usurpation is taking possession of another's property without right." (5) This is like some heirs benefiting from living in a property or its proceeds without the permission and consent of the other heirs, which is an usurpation of their right. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “The property of a Muslim is not lawful except with his willing consent.” (6) This hadith indicates the unlawfulness of consuming a Muslim's property without right, except with their willing consent, even if it is little.

The usurper (whoever has the estate in their possession) must return the usurped property and pay its equivalent rent for what they benefited from the estate to the heirs, because they took another's property without right. This is because benefits are wealth, and by usurping the origin of the property, they also usurped its benefits, and therefore they must return its equivalent, which is its rent. (7)

4. Delay in paying Zakat on the estate: Zakat does not fall away with the death of the deceased, according to the opinions of scholars from the Maliki, Hanbali, and Shafi'i schools. (8) This is based on Allah Almighty's saying: “after any bequest which was made or debt.” (An-Nisa: 11). The verse indicates that the heirs' right is after the payment of debts, and Zakat is Allah's right, like a debt.

Consequently, Zakat may be due on the deceased's wealth, and they may die before paying it, or Zakat may become due on the wealth after the death of the deceased and before division. Since the estate is suspended without division and the wealth is held in common among the heirs, the heirs may delay paying the Zakat due on them from the estate, or due on their inheritor before death, which leads to the loss of the poor's right. Whoever deliberately delays the division of the estate bears the burden of this. (9)

Social Consequences of Delaying Inheritance Distribution

1. Disintegration of family ties and the occurrence of discord: Delaying inheritance is one of the main causes of disputes and conflicts. Greed and conflicting interests may push some heirs to withhold inheritance, which corrupts kinship ties, breeds animosity and hatred, deteriorates family relationships, and turns the family into an environment charged with tension and conflict instead of being a source of support and solidarity. This can lead to complete estrangement between family members.

Delay may also lead to the intervention of external parties seeking to benefit from the dispute among the heirs, which further complicates matters and introduces new dimensions of conflict that may be difficult to resolve. This contradicts the objectives of Islamic law, which aims to preserve family cohesion.

2. Spread of injustice: Heirs who are deprived of their rights feel injustice and unfairness, which generates negative feelings towards those who withhold the inheritance and affects their psychological stability.

3. Social condemnation: Preventing and delaying inheritance is considered socially condemned behavior. The person who withholds inheritance may be subjected to condemnation and denunciation by society and is viewed as an unjust person who infringes on the rights of others, which affects their reputation and social standing.

4. Stagnation of the economy: Inheritance can constitute capital that can be invested and circulated in the economic cycle. Freezing inheritance leads to freezing these funds and hindering their role in economic development. Heirs may also lose part of the estate due to neglect and economic changes that may affect the value of assets, and heirs lose opportunities for financial growth.

5. Resorting to courts: Often, continuous disputes over inheritance lead to recourse to courts, which costs the heirs effort, time, and money, and may exacerbate the problem instead of resolving it amicably.

Preserving Rights and Family Cohesion: The Goal and Wisdom of Inheritance

Adhering to what the glorious Sharia has detailed regarding inheritance is not merely an adherence to Allah's limits; rather, it is the means to preserve rights and a safety valve for the stability of the family and society. Those who withhold inheritance must fear Allah and His punishment, and remember that what they take unjustly will be accounted for on the Day of Judgment. When rights are distributed to their owners in due time, the sources of dispute are dried up, and the doors of blessings are opened, thus achieving well-being in this life and the hereafter, preserving rights from loss, and averting corruption before it occurs.

Expediting the liquidation and distribution of estates according to the legal shares is an act of obedience to Allah's commands, an embodiment of divine justice, a guarantee of continued affection, and a realization of the public interest sought by every tranquil soul. By doing so, the right of the deceased is preserved and their liabilities are cleared, the right of the living is protected and their wealth is nurtured, and security and harmony prevail throughout the family and society.

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References:

(1) Tirmidhi, Muhammad ibn Isa ibn Sawra al-Tirmidhi, Sunan al-Tirmidhi, also known as Al-Jami' al-Kabir, Dar al-Ta'seel, Research and Information Technology Center, Vol. 2, Book of Funerals (1100), 1st Edition, 2014, p. 310.

(2) Nagham Ismail Mahmoud Abdellah, "Delaying the Division of Estates and Its Consequences - A Comparative Jurisprudential Study," Journal of the Faculty of Sharia and Law in Tefahna Al-Ashraf - Dakahlia, No. (25), Part 2, 2022, p. 1421.

(3) Bayhaqi, Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn al-Husayn. Shu'ab al-Iman. Edited by: Muhammad al-Sa'id Basuyouni Zaghloul. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyah, 1410 AH / 1990 AD. Part (11), Hadith (6379), p. 223.

(4) Nagham Ismail Mahmoud Abdellah, previous reference, p. 1445.

(5) Juwayni, Abd al-Malik ibn Abd Allah ibn Yusuf. Nihayat al-Matlab fi Dirayat al-Madhhab, edited by: Abd al-Azim Mahmoud al-Deeb, Dar al-Minhaj, Jeddah, Vol. 7, 1st Edition, 2007, p. 169.

(6) Albani, Muhammad Nasir al-Din. Sahih al-Jami' al-Saghir wa Ziyadatuhu (Al-Fath al-Kabir), Investigator: Zuhair al-Shawish, Al-Maktab al-Islami - Beirut, 3rd Edition, 1988, 7622-2780 (Sahih), p. 1268.

(7) Mawardi, Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Habib al-Mawardi al-Basri, Al-Hawi al-Kabir fi Fiqh Madhhab al-Imam al-Shafi'i, may Allah be pleased with him, edited by Ali Muhammad Muawwad and Adel Ahmed Abd al-Mawjud, Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyah, Beirut-Lebanon, Vol. 7, Book of Usurpation, 1st Edition, 1994, p. 136.

(8) Mawardi, Ali ibn Muhammad ibn Habib al-Mawardi al-Basri, Al-Hawi al-Kabir, previous reference, Vol. 3, Book of Zakat, 1st Edition, 1994, p. 368.

(9) Nagham Ismail Mahmoud Abdellah, previous reference, p. 1457.