LCIS Solutions LLC DBA NASIB · Registered LDA #289 · California · Not a law firm · No legal advice
The Madhab Guide
A plain-language guide for Muslim Americans who want to honor their faith in their estate plan.
The Basics
A madhab is a school of Islamic jurisprudence — a structured tradition of scholarly interpretation that guides how Muslims understand and apply Islamic principles in daily life, including matters of inheritance. There are four main Sunni schools: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali, named after the scholars who founded them.
All four schools agree on the core principles of Islamic inheritance — the major differences are subtle edge cases that rarely affect typical families. You do not need to be an expert in your madhab to benefit from an Islamic estate plan.
Most Muslim Americans follow whichever school their family brought from their home country, often without thinking about it explicitly. That is completely normal — and NASIB will work with whatever you know.
The Four Schools
Common in:
Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi, Afghan, many Arab communities
The most widespread school globally and the most common in our community. NASIB documents default to Hanafi unless you specify otherwise.
Common in:
Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Egyptian, West African (Senegalese, Nigerian, Malian)
Predominant in North and West Africa. Slight differences in edge cases involving the grandfather's share and some residuary heirs.
Common in:
Indonesian, Malaysian, Somali, Yemeni, some South Asian communities
Most common in Southeast Asia and parts of East Africa. For most families, practical differences from Hanafi are minimal.
Common in:
Saudi, Emirati, Kuwaiti, Qatari, some Syrian communities
Predominant in the Arabian Peninsula. The school underlying much of formal Islamic legal scholarship in the Gulf.
Find Your Starting Point
Select your family's background for a suggested starting point. This is guidance only — not a religious ruling.
Quick Background Guide
This is not a fatwa — just a starting point to help orient your intake form answers.
Practical Differences
The honest answer: for most families, there is no practical difference.The core fara'id shares (spouse, children, parents) are consistent across all four schools. Differences arise only in specific edge cases.
Our Approach
Our documents default to the Hanafi school as it is the most common in our community. If you follow a different school, note it in your intake form and we will adjust accordingly.
For complex situations — such as unusual family structures, significant estate values, or families where the madhab distinction is important for religious reasons — our scholar review add-on is available. A qualified Islamic scholar will review your documents for $150, adding 5–7 days to the process.
The most important thing is to have a plan in place. Do not let uncertainty about your madhab delay getting your family protected.
Our intake form asks about your madhab preference. If you're still unsure, select “Not sure / flexible” and we'll guide you through it.
Start Your Intake Form →