A bequest to orphaned grandchildren, required by statute in some Muslim-majority countries.
In Islamic law
Where a son or daughter predeceases the parent, their children may be excluded by a surviving uncle under the classical rules. Egypt and several other jurisdictions responded with a compulsory bequest out of the one third. It is a statutory reform rather than a position of the four classical schools.
In Canadian law
No Canadian analogue is needed — a will can simply provide for grandchildren directly out of the discretionary third.
Making an Islamic will in Canada — province by province, and what makes one valid where you live →
We have not yet researched whether the four Sunni schools differ on this term, so we are not going to tell you either way. Where a specific case turns on it, ask a qualified scholar rather than relying on a general summary.
Canadian legal detail
Treadstone Law, an Ontario firm with a wills and estates practice, covers the Canadian side of this in more depth:
This is legal information only. For advice on your own circumstances, speak to a lawyer.
Citations & sources
Every factual claim on this page traces to a source below. Details change — check the original source before relying on any figure, fee or legal position. Anything under “further reading” is related material, not a source for what is stated here.
- Surah an-Nisa 4:11 — shares of children and parents — Quran.com
- Surah an-Nisa 4:12 — shares of spouses and uterine siblings — Quran.com
- Surah an-Nisa 4:176 — the kalalah verse — Quran.com
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Book 85: Laws of Inheritance (Faraid) — Sunnah.com
- Sahih Muslim, Book of Inheritance — Sunnah.com
- Encyclopaedia of Islam — Brill
- Oxford Islamic Studies / Oxford Reference — Oxford University Press
- Do grandchildren inherit directly ontario intestacy — Treadstone Law
- Wills & estates practice — Treadstone Law