Chapter: Divorce Issued by the Terminally Ill Husband

Any man whose illness is legally established, who divorces his wife while in that illness and then dies from it, is succeeded by her as an heir—according to Mālik, the majority of the scholars of Madinah, and most jurists in general. Their ruling follows the precedent set by ʿUthmān when he granted inheritance to the wife of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAwf (may Allah be pleased with him).

For Mālik, it makes no difference whether the husband dies while she is still in her waiting period (ʿidda) or after it has elapsed, nor does it matter whether he pronounced one, two, or three divorces. This is in line with ʿUthmān’s judgment delivered in the presence of a group of Companions. An irrevocable divorce, a khulʿ, or any other form of separation is treated the same, so long as the illness was life-threatening and he in fact died from it.

If he divorces her during that illness before the marriage was consummated, she is entitled to half the bridal gift (ṣadāq), she observes no waiting period—neither for death nor for divorce—and she still inherits from him should he die in that illness.

If the marriage had been consummated, her waiting period begins on the day of the divorce. If the divorce was irrevocable and he dies while she is still completing that period, its term remains unchanged. If the divorce was revocable, her waiting period changes to that of widowhood. If the divorcing husband’s wife dies