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Fatwa CenterDivision of inheritance among wife, 4 sons and 4 daughters
Question
Assalaamu alaykum. Please calculate the inheritance according to the following information:
- Does the deceased have male relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A son) Number 4
- Does the deceased have female relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A daughter) Number 4 (A wife) Number 1
- The will which the deceased left behind and that is related to his inheritance is: That his house and land be devided between his sons and daughters. As for the cash, this shall be devided among his four male children, except for an amount which he left for his daughters.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
If the heirs are only those mentioned in the question and the deceased did not leave any other heir, then his wife gets one eighth as her legal share due to the existence of the children (direct heirs); Allah says (what means): {But if you leave a child, then for them [i.e. the wives] is an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you [may have] made or debt.} [Quran 4:12]
The remainder will be divided amongst the sons and the daughters by ta‘seeb (by virtue of having a paternal relation with the deceased and not having an allotted share, so they get what is left after the allotted shares have been distributed); the male twice the share of the female, as Allah says (what means): {Allah instructs you concerning your children [i.e. their portions of inheritance]: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females.}[Quran 4:11]
Therefore, the inheritance should be divided into 96 shares, the wife gets one eighth, which is 12 shares; each son gets 14 shares; and each daughter gets 7 shares.
His will that the house and the land be divided between the sons and daughters is not taken into consideration and is of no effect, and his wife has the right to take her full share from the house and the land. The same thing applies to his will that the money be divided amongst the males only and not the females; it is of no consideration and of no effect, and each daughter has the right to take her legitimate share from that money.
Both wills are considered a will for an heir, which is prohibited by the Shariah, and they are not effective except with the consent of all the heirs.
For the consent of an heir to be valid, one must be an adult and in sound mind, and if any heir did not agree with it, then they have the right to take their full share from the house, the land, and the money.
For more benefit about the ruling that the will for an heir is not valid, please refer to fatwas 116588 and 119243.
Allah knows best.
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