Islamic
Shari`ah is unique as to caring to sons at the lifetime of their parents and after their death, this is demonstrated in custody, nursing, and expending on sons. Also, it obliged inheritance for them in their parents' estate which reveals how Islam pays attention for sons and their custody to provide a safe welfare life.
Taking inheritance in the Islamic Shari`ah into account, we would find that it is in line with the natural disposition, filiation is the expectation of paternity, and the instinct of possession urges man to work, earn livelihood, excel, and frequently withhold himself from enjoying his wealth to leave it for his sons to enjoy his effort after his death.
Father does all this while pleased and satisfied because the teachings of Islam enjoined on him to provide wealth for his sons to live in dignity and esteem among people.
Islam prescribes the major part in the parents' wealth for sons, it does not distinguish between males and females that it does not keep all estate for males and deprive females from it as practiced in so many legislations worldwide in recent and old times, rather Islam is fair in this regard and denies all kinds of inheritance injustice known in humanity.
Right of fetus
Jurists unanimously agreed that fetus has the right in estate if two stipulations are met:
1- Actual existence of fetus in his mother's womb at the time of devisor's death. This is can easily be recognized by determining the time of delivery since the devisor's death that is if the mother delivered the baby a month to six months after the death, the minimum period of delivery, then jurists ruled that the baby is worthy of inheritance.
2- The fetus is delivered alive, even if he made one cry, and then died, he/she would be worthy of inheritance. This is the opinion of the majority of scholars. If he/she is born dead, then inheritance is not due, even if the cause of death is a serious offense against the mother.
So long as the fetus is inside the womb, the estate shall not be finally distributed as the fetus gender or number can't yet be identified that is some of the heirs' shares vary according to the gender of the fetus. Accordingly, jurists are unanimously agreed on non-distribution to the estate until time of delivery on condition that the heirs approve it explicitly or implicitly, namely they do not claim it. This is applied to the case when the fetus has no participant heir or even if there such heir but he/she is disinherited. The point of disagreement
among jurists on this topic arises when one of the heirs asks for the distribution of the estate, thus some jurists approve distribution of the estate, others disapproved it, a third view approved distribution to some portion of the estate. The preponderant view is that of the majority of jurists which distributes the prescribed shares whose holders are not affected by any change, because delaying them until delivery would inflict harm upon them without necessity.
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