Islamic Estate Planning

I don’t want to sound like a greedy lawyer but it is a religious obligation for all Muslims to have a will in America. Oh, I felt greasy for even mentioning it. The Qur’an reads, “…when death approaches any of you, if he leaves any goods, that he makes bequest to parents and next of kin, according to reasonable usage…[2]” The prophet Muhammad is reported by Ibn Umar to have said: “It is not right for any Muslim person who has anything to bequeath that he may pass even two nights without having a Will written.” So whenever an attorney can throw in a religious obligation to compel a client to come see him, he does. A Muslim has to have a Will in the United State in order for his estate to be distributed according to Shariah law.

Estate Planning for Muslims is difficult. The difficulty of estate planning is not in the drafting of documents it is the culture clash between two ideologies. Islamic nations are very family oriented and structured whereas American culture celebrates individualism and freedom.

The Qur’an, as a central cornerstone of Islamic society, keeps functionality to the Islamic system that has lasted for hundreds of years. The Islamic culture is filled with traditions and customs that go far beyond beliefs. They are a way of life. This way of life is expressed in the Last Will and Testament of a Muslim. The Islamic will is the last instrument a Muslim has to show the faith he or she carried for her life.

American estate planning system is very independent from outside intrusion. This structure has its benefits and its downfalls. The system is benefited because families are left to decide what is best for them. This gives an individual the power to decide what is best in distributing their estate and who is best to receive it. Since they built it, theoretically they should be the best to distribute it. The problem is most people don’t know what is best to do with the distribution of their estate because that is many years into the future and we can’t predict the future. Upon the death of the testator, the family is often fighting over the fairness of the distribution.

Islamic estate planning distribution is found in the Qur’an. Upon the death of an individual, there are no surprises. Scholars and experts on the Islamic estate planning can tell a family exactly how the property should be distributed. If a family member is upset at the distribution, then they have to take that against their belief system not the family member.

Of course there is a problem, a really big concern. How will the American court system react to Islamic wills? The system is sexist boy and girls are treated differently, wives and mothers receive less than husbands and fathers. Non-Muslims cannot inherit. Most judges in America are Christian by birth. Polygamy is practiced among Muslims even in America. When it becomes obvious that the family was a polygamous family how will the judge distribute the estate?

Most Muslims accept the distribution system of the Qur’an. I imagine as more generations become “Americanized” younger generations will challenge the distribution system based on principles of fairness and equality. As a nation, we should respect the decision of the deceased even if it seems unfair or unequal. Most Americans do not understand the traditions and beliefs of Muslim and it would be foolish for us to act as if our way is better than theirs for them. We believe first and foremost in the principle of freedom and that freedom allows us to follow whatever system of belief we choose as long as it does not harm the life and liberty of another.

The Islamic law of inheritance has an important footprint on our world history. The founder of algebra, Muhammad ibn M?s? al-Khw?rizm?, used his study on Islamic inheritance law as an impetus behind algebra’s formation[3]. Al-Hass?r, a North African mathematician specializing in Islamic inheritance law, developed the modern symbolic mathematical notation for fractions namely where the numerator and denominator are separated by a horizontal line[4].

Within all religion, there is dispute between interpretations of ancient text. Attorney must realize that their clients are not all the same and the complexities of the Muslim law of inheritance. Professor Almaric Rumsey (1825-1899) states that “[Islamic inheritance laws] comprises beyond question the most refined and elaborate system of rules for the devolution of property that is known to the civilized world[5].” There is no wonder many different people interpret the same texted differently. Even the director of the Indonesian Ministry of Islamic Religious affairs, Nasruddin Usmar, has gone as far as to imply that the Qur’an supports to a division between male and female at a ratio of 1:1[6]. In America, the client must be the author of the distribution, not Islam or the last will and testament can be attacked.