Lawyer: Many unaware of their rights under the law

WEALTH PRESERVATION

PETALING JAYA: The main reasons for the accumulation of “frozen assets” include heirs being unaware of their rights under Islamic laws, with some not knowing about their inheritance or their loved ones dying without leaving any will.

Syariah lawyer Khairul Anwar Rahmat said that in some cases, cash and assets were frozen because no heir came forward to claim their inheritance; or there were disputes over the rightful beneficiary.

“Some cases take dozens of years to resolve. Some remain unresolved despite having passed through several generations,” he told mStar yesterday.

Most of the frozen assets worth some RM40bil belonging to Muslims were in the form of land, property, company and corporate shares, ASB shares, Tabung Haji and unit trust accounts and cash, Khairul said.

He added that many properties of Muslims were also frozen because of their lack of knowledge in will planning and writing.


“Properties and assets can be bequeathed to heirs under the faraid law as provided in Islam.


“Administration of the estate can be better planned if the individual writes the will,” he said.

Khairul added that the probate also became complicated when the heir did not know the extent, the amount or the location of the property left by the deceased.

Disputes also arose among families due to a lack of knowledge in probate matters, or when beneficiaries were not aware of the deceased’s assets.

Khairul said estate administration, will writing, legacies, bequests or distributions were important things to know about inheritance laws.

Otherwise, families could break up or assets be left idle for generations.

“Letting this go on would not only affect the nation but also cause problems for the rightful heirs,” Khairul said.

He advised Muslims to seek advice and information about inheritance laws early and plan their wills to avoid disputes.