Prohibition or Non-prohibition of Non-Muslims’ Inheritance from Muslims: A Critical Study

In all schools of Islamic jurisprudence, heresy is among the things that prevent inheritance; thus, an infidel (Non Muslim) heir does not inherit from a Muslim testator; however, there is still controversy over the inheritance of a Muslim heir from an infidel testator among jurists. Sunnis believe that Muslims do not inherit from disbelievers, arguing that with the presence of Muslim heirs, even among the distant relatives of the deceased, an infidel heir is not entitled to inheritance. Shia (Shīʿah) jurists, however, are persistent about the inheriting of the Muslims from infidels. That heresy prevents inheritance and Muslims are entitled to inherit from infidels had been ignored, either intentionally or unintentionally, when the inheritance law was incorporated in the Civil Code. The legislators, however, after a lengthy delay, declared that a Muslim heir is entitled to inherit from an infidel testator by adding the article 881 of Civil Code, ceasing the disputes among jurists. This paper seeks to explain why at the time of drafting the Civil Code the legislators did not regard the heresy as an obstacle of inheritance, and whether or not the addition of article 881 of Civil Code or the amendment of the law was an appropriate act.