On the wife’s death the mahr too is part of her estate

Question

If the wife has not remitted the mahr and the husband has not paid it either, and meanwhile the wife passes away, what becomes of the mahr, given that it is wajib upon the husband? Will the mahr be discharged if the sum of the mahr is distributed among the poor and the needy?

Answer

This mahr will be regarded as the estate (tarika) of the deceased wife and will be divided among the heirs according to the shares laid down by the Shari‘a, just as the rest of the estate is divided.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.