The Rule of Inheritance with Respect to Those Who Died in One Accident According to Islamic Jurisprudence: A Descriptive Comparative Study

Abstract

     When two inheritors pass away in one accident, such kind of death has several legal judgments and cases with respect to the rule of inheritance i.e., if they die together at one moment, there is not any kind of inheritance between them among all the jurists due to the absence of the condition of inheritance in Islam. on the other hand, if they die in different times and there has been some kind of arrangements between their deaths, the later of them inherits from the ancestor and becomes a legal heir. It is worth mentioning in this respect that when the succession of their deaths is unknown, there should not be any kind of inheritance between them according to not only the Hanbali school but also the majority of jurists. However, Zaydiyyah Hadawia (a Yemeni Shia group) states that they inherit from the old owned properties of each other regardless of their unknown death succession. This Zaydi case is also approved by the Yemeni current legislation (law) in case there is not any disagreement among the heirs of each late person. As for Hanbalis, they approved the inheritance only if there is not any claim of dispute between the heirs of each person. In this context, some Shafi’is condition the inheritance and the share of property among them in case their succession of death is only known.