Special Case: Inheritance by Dual Relationship

Here is the answer key for the mini-quiz we concluded with in the previous post:

1. Yes
2. No
3. No
4. No
5. No
6. Yes

Any questions/confusions should, as always, be expressed in the comments section below, insha’Allah.

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In certain cases of inheritance the mayyit may have two relationships with an heir. Such an heir will inherit through both relationships. The way to solve such a problem is simple; the heir will be treated as two distinct people, inheriting as both, and getting the sum of the two shares at the end.

Lets try one out, insha’Allah.

Example 1: A woman dies leaving behind

• Husband/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son
• 1 Haqeeqi paternal uncles sons

The mayyits husband is also her haqeeqi paternal uncles son, i.e. cousin.

This is a case of a woman marrying her paternal cousin. In this case, the husband will inherit as a husband and also as a cousin. In addition, the mayyit also has another separate cousin of the same kind. In conclusion, the mayyit has two cousins, one of them also being her husband. We can turn this into a new list of distinct heirs as below:

• Husband
• 2 Haqeeqi paternal uncles sons

Now we incorporate this list into the chart below:

Since the husband has a double relationship with the mayyit, he inherits from both angles.

Husband gets:
2 portions as the husband.
1 portion as a cousin.

Total portions for the husband/cousin  ＝ 3 portions

Final Answer: The estate will be divided into 4 equal portions:

The Husband/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son gets 3 portions.
The other Haqeeqi paternal uncles son gets 1 portion.

Example 2: A man dies leaving behind

• 2 Wives
• Maternal grandfather
• 2 Haqeeqi paternal aunts
• 1 Akhyaafi brother/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son
• 1 Haqeeqi paternal uncles son
• 1 Allaati paternal uncles son

The maternal grandfather, haqeeqi paternal aunts are non-heirs. The allaati paternal uncles son is excluded. This leaves us with:

• 2 Wives
• 1 Akhyaafi brother/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son
• 1 Haqeeqi paternal uncles son

In this case, the mayyits akhyaafi brother is also his paternal cousin. In addition to this, the mayyit has a second cousin. Looking at it as distinct relationships, we can say that the mayyit has 1 akhyaafi brother and 2 haqeeqi paternal uncles sons, along with 2 wives. See list below:

• 2 Wives
• 1 Akhyaafi brother
• 2 Haqeeqi paternal uncles sons

Accordingly, the chart is below:

Similar to the previous problem, we add up the two shares of the akhyaafi brother/cousin to get his total share.

Akhyaafi brother gets:
4 portions as the akhyaafi brother.
7 portions as a cousin.

Total portions for the akhyaafi brother/cousin ＝ 11 portions

Final Answer: The estate will be divided into 24 equal portions:

Each Wife gets 3 portions.
The Akhyaafi brother/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son gets 11 portions.
The other Haqeeqi paternal uncles son gets 7 portions.

We conclude this post with an example problem for the readers to do on their own. The answer will be provided in the next post insha’Allah.

A man dies leaving behind

• Mother
• Paternal grandmother
• 1 Haqeeqi sister
• 1 Akhyaafi brother/Haqeeqi paternal uncles son
• 1 Allaati paternal uncles son

How will the estate be divided and distributed?