Another Step Close To Sharia

[chrisgel]

The Law Society has written guidelines for solicitors on how to draw up Sharia compliant wills.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10716844/Islamic-law-is-adopted-by-British-legal-chiefs.html?fb

"Nicholas Fluck, president of The Law Society, said the guidance would promote “good practice” in applying Islamic principles in the British legal system. "

Should we be incorporating any religious principles into our legal system given that most religions and especially Islam include elements of unfairness to some sections of society or other?

[Graham-W]

It's not unusual for certain members of a family to be left out of a will in the UK. The person writing the will makes the decisions.
If, by studying Islamic principles, a solicitor can carry out his job more more ably from the point of view of the will writer, it should be applauded.

[sandyRoe]

In UK law do widows and their children not have rights of inheritance whatever may be written in the will? Would Sharia compliant wills be in conflict with these rights?

[Kathyan]

A step too far in my opinion.

[Old_Geezer]

As I read the OP we are not incorporating anything. These are simply guidlines for writing a will according to the customers desired set of rules.

[jomifl]

Presumably if a muslim dies intestate the inheritance will follow UK law so that his wife will inherit. If a widower then his children of whatever gender will receive equal shares of the estate. If Sharia law discriminates against female daughters then that would be illegal under UK law.

[Carakeel]

I agree with old geezer to an extent. However, I may be making myself very unpopular here, but ... I am generally against changing the laws of this country to suit groups of foreigners who come to live here, or to suit their religious views. This country has already lost so much of it's "Britishness", due to the demands of immigrants and weak politicians who haven't got the guts to stand up for the British people and British traditions etc. You would not see this in most of the other European countries. If you decide to go and live in a foreign country, this does not give you the right to demand that their laws and traditions change to suit you!

[woofgang]

No one is changing the law. Just as restaurants who want custom learn how to prepare the food their customers want, people who write wills learn how to write the wills that their customers want. If you have foreign property you choose a lawyer who knows how to write wills where the estate is composed of foreign property. If you want a sharia compliant will, why shouldn't you have one?

Sandy, in UK law, widows and children do not have automatic rights, although there is the facility to contest the will.

[tamborine]

Who pays for females upkeep if they cant inherit....tax payer?

[naomi24]

//Anyone married in a church, or in a civil ceremony, could be excluded from succession under Sharia principles, which recognise only Muslim weddings for inheritance purposes.//

Mmm. That sounds dodgy. Unless a couple who are married in a Muslim ceremony also organise a civil ceremony conducted by an official registrar, the marriage isn’t deemed legal under UK law. Where does that then leave a ‘wife’ and children not mentioned in a will in any claim on a man’s estate?

[woofgang]

The same as any woman (or man actually) of any or no religious belief who has children with a man/woman she/he is not legally married to....and there are LOADS of them around. If they aren't specifically mentioned in the will, or if the man/woman dies intestate, they may be entitled to something from the estate if they can prove dependency, children, I believe are covered under the intestacy law, a non legally recognised partner is not.

[naomi24]

Yes - no legal protection.

Another thought. Sharia dictates that certain people may not be named as beneficiaries. That's scarily controlling.

[chrisgel]

Yes Naomi, controlling indeed. Another lever to keep generation after generation within the faith.

[woofgang]

we may or may not agree with the requirements of sharia. i dont want to call it sharia law as it is not the law of this country. That doesnt, though, affect the principal of inheritance in this country that says that people can choose what legacies and requirements they put in their wills, provided that they do not contravene UK law. Solicitors educating themselves in the requirements of sharia compliant wills does not alter the law of this country any more than solicitors educating themselves in the requirements of wills where overseas property is involved. teacup. storm.

[jomifl]

Woofgang is I believe correct, it is a storm an a teacup. It would reqire an act of parliament to change inheritance law. This is just lawyers trying to acquire another income stream.

[naomi24]

Jom, but would inheritance law would apply to Muslims whose marriages aren't legally recognised - or to their children? I don't think so.

[jomifl]

If their marriages aren't legally recognised then the beneficiaries would have to pay income tax.

[LazyGun]

I have read the Telegraph report, but not quite sure I fully understand how the guidance that is being offered constitutes the implementation of Sharia Law.

It would be helpful if they could point out, in bullet points, quite how this guidance will lead to changes in our current inheritance law or how it will have supremacy over UK Law. If they could show that, then indeed they might have a point. If they cannot, it sounds a bit like a storm in a teacup.

[naomi24]

Jom, ??

//"Nicholas Fluck, president of The Law Society, said the guidance would promote “good practice” in applying Islamic principles in the British legal system. " //

I wonder what that means exactly?

[sandyRoe]

It might mean that a lawyer would tell his client that his proposals, while acceptable in Sharia law, weren't in the British legal system.

[woofgang]

It means that solicitors who are asked to prepare sharia compliant wills will be more likely to know what they are talking about.