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What is the ruling on a deceased person leaving a will to endow a building for victims and charities, and distributing the remainder to needy sons and daughters, and does this fall under inheritance matters, given the presence of 10 sons and 4 daughters, and is a brother entitled to use a guardianship document for his two unmarried sisters to claim their share, and does the stock portfolio belonging to the daughters that the father left behind count as part of the inheritance?

2 min readAlso available in العربية

1. The payment of debts from the deceased's estate takes precedence over bequests and the division of the estate among the heirs.

2. If the deceased bequeathed an endowment (waqf) of a building after his death, and the debt has been settled, then if the value of the endowment does not exceed one-third of the estate, his bequest must be executed. However, if it exceeds one-third, only one-third shall be endowed, and anything beyond one-third requires the consent of the adult heirs.

3. Including needy sons and daughters among the beneficiaries of the endowment (after those afflicted and charities) is not permissible, as it is considered a bequest to an heir. If nothing remains for them from the bequest, the matter is clear. But if something remains and the other heirs do not approve it, it shall be returned to the estate and distributed according to Islamic law.

4. There is no document that legally permits anyone to take the right of another. A brother's guardianship over his sisters is only for their care and safeguarding their rights; it does not permit him to take their rights. If they are adult and of sound mind, no one has guardianship over them except in matters of marriage.

5. The portfolio registered in the daughters' names, if it was a gift from the father, does not enter into the inheritance. However, if it was for another purpose, it is considered part of the estate.

6. If the deceased left only sons and daughters, the estate is divided among them such that the male receives the share of two females. The estate is divided into 24 shares, with two shares for each son and one share for each daughter.

7. Estate matters are serious and complex, and they should be referred to Sharia courts for investigation or discussed directly with scholars.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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