Does the anti-Sharī‘a law impact the validity of my will?

At the outset, the anti-Sharī‘a legislation is unconstitutional and is already being challenged around the country.  Shariawiz, however, does not take anything for granted.

Our Sharī‘a-compliant Islamic will form was carefully drafted to take into account the anti-Sharī‘a legislation. It sets forth the division of your estate in excruciating detail. In other words, a probate court would not be required to interpret or apply Sharī‘a to enforce your will. The shares are set forth based on the current Islamic heirs. If the surviving Islamic heirs change between the time of signing the will and the time of death, the will directs the executor—not the court—to recalculate the shares according to the attached Islamic Inheritance Law Appendix. The executor has the final word. Literally, the probate court has nothing to do except to implement the decedent’s wishes as set forth in the will as required under American law.

Remember that under American law you can disinherit your children, your parents, and practically anyone else. The only person you cannot disinherit under American law is your spouse (two or three states though have forced heirship for children).

One of the few instances a court may consider to not carry out the decedent’s wishes is if a decedent attempts to give his spouse less than he or she would have been entitled to under the elective-share or community-property rights. This has nothing to do with the anti-Sharī‘a legislation. When you prepare your Islamic will using our software, a valid elective-share/community-property waiver is included. This waiver must be signed by your spouse to make sure the probate court will enforce your Islamic will smoothly.

If you want your estate to be divided according to Sharī‘a inheritance rules, use our ISLAMIC WILL software to prepare your own customized Islamic estate plan that is legally valid for your state.