What is the order of priority for custody (Hadanah) when men and women are equally qualified?
Chapter on Who is More Entitled to Child Custody
Al-Mughni
Book of Maintenance (Nafaqāt)
Primary text
When both men and women are equally eligible for custody, the mother takes precedence above all others. Following the mother, preference is given to her ascendants (her mothers, and so on, upwards), prioritizing those closer in degree. This preference exists because they are women whose maternity is established, placing them in the position of the mother. The commonly accepted view among our scholars establishes this hierarchy: Mother, then her maternal ascendants, then the father, then his maternal ascendants, then the paternal grandfather, then his maternal ascendants, and finally the grandfather's father's maternal ascendants, even if the latter are not heirs, because they relate through a male relative who is an eligible custodian, unlike the mother's father's mother.
Supporting text
There is a narration attributed to Ahmad where the father's mother and her ascendants are preferred over the mother's mother. Based on this narration, the father would be prioritized after the mother, followed by his mothers. Another narration from Ahmad suggests that the uterine sister and the maternal aunt have precedence over the father, meaning the full sister would have precedence over him, the maternal aunt, and all other male relatives (Asabah).