Sold all his property to his wife to disinherit his sons
17-6-2009 | IslamWeb
Question:
Salamu Alaykoum
A 66 years old man had a terminal cancer. During his last days he sold all of his properties to his only wife therefore preventing his 3 male sons from inheriting him supposedly because he doesn't his wife to get a small inheritance. Is that legal? What should the sons do in order to get their share of the inheritance.
Regards and Salamou Alaykoum
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad 
is His slave and Messenger.
If the mentioned ill person sold his properties to his wife in an actual sale (an item for a price) for its actual market price without being a matter of favouritism (i.e. for a price far lower than its actual market value), then he behaved in a correct and valid way and this is not an injustice to the right of the heirs because they will inherit the price that he received for the property. Indeed, the jurists 
stated that the sale of a sick person is like the sale of a healthy person; both sales are valid and all other rulings apply to them if he sells at the market price even if this is for an heir.
However, if he had sold his properties to his wife as a matter of favouritism, then the jurists stated that the such a sale takes the ruling of a will. Therefore, if the will is for an heir –and the wife is an heir –then the heirs have the right to invalidate it after the father’s death and it is not effective except if they consent to it. However, the sale is invalid in case of favoritism only, but it is valid in cases other than that. For example, if he had sold to her a land for 10,000 while its market price is 30,000 then the sale is valid only in one-third of the land, which is 10,000, and the heirs have the right to take the other two-thirds of the land. The wife whom you mentioned in the question has the choice to invalidate the sale and it is even more appropriate for her to invalidate it if her husband had sold her his properties a false sale in order to prevent his heirs.
As regards what the children should do in order to get their right, then they should first of all clarify to the wife the religious ruling on that, then if she gives them their right, then this is what is required, otherwise, they may take the matter to an Islamic court if any, and if there is no Islamic court and they are not able to get their right in this worldly life, then they will take it on the Day of Judgment when they will be most in need for it.
Allaah Knows best.