One of the problems that Wills are supposed to overcome is the possibility of contention or disagreements among family members when it comes to the distribution of assets of a person who had died intestate (that is, without a Will).
I’m sure most people would have heard – either first-hand or from someone else – stories of families falling apart because of distrust among the members. Brothers and sisters have been known to fight over these disagreements, just like this celebrated case which was reported in the Borneo Post a few years ago.
But if you think such problems are confined to non-Muslims alone, you’ll be surprised. Even among Muslims, where the distribution of assets to the heirs will depend on the Faraid – family contention can and do take place.
Just last month (9 July 2007), The Star reported that a Syariah court judge was forced to adjourn hearing an asset distribution case when two brothers got into a brawl.
At the Kuala Berang Syariah Court in Terengganu, two men had a heated argument and during the exchange of words, a scuffle broke out between them. The younger brother kicked and punched his 69-year-old eldest brother while another brother tried to restrain them.
Now, if the deceased had written a Will or a Wasiat (for Muslims) properly and appointed an executor, these fisticuffs may well have been well contained. I’m not saying that they will be avoided but for sure, if the deceased had appointed an executor, there can be no argument over the choice of person who will be the administrator of the estate. Better yet if the executor is an independent, impartial executor such as a Trust corporation.
That’s one of the advantages of having a Will or a Wasiat. You just cut across many family objections and contention over the asset distribution because at the end of the day, you can simply leave it to the executor to do his job.