What is the ruling on disputed property when conflicting proofs exist regarding the shares?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Claims and Evidences
Primary text
If the proofs conflict, one view holds that the proofs nullify each other, lots are drawn among the disputants for what they contest, and the winner swears an oath and takes it, making the ruling identical to the case where no proofs were presented. This is the position of Abu 'Ubayd and al-Shafi'i when he was in Iraq. Another narration mandates dividing the property among the claimants proportionally based on the 'awl (increase in the denominator of a division of inheritance) structure.
Supporting text
According to the 'awl structure derived from the division among claimants (six shares are treated as thirteen): the claimant of all receives two-thirds (four shares) of the original total plus half of what remains after that allocation (which corresponds to a large portion of the total). Another view, attributed to Ibn Abi Layla and some scholars of Iraq, divides the property based on the 'awl of fixed shares (fara'id), resulting in a total of eleven shares: the claimant of all receives six, the claimant of half receives three, and the claimant of a third receives two. Abu Thawr and a narration from Malik hold that the claimant of all takes half, and the remainder is suspended until clarity emerges. This is also a view of al-Shafi'i.