Adat Pepatih - confined to the state of Negeri Sembilan in West Malaysia, and its substantive provisions are primarily on land-holding including inheritance.  Based on matrilineal, Adat Pepatih can be distinguished from the rest of the Malay customary law by traditions contained in customary sayings which have been handed down from generation to generation.  The inherited property is divided into two categories:   Ancestral property (i.e. property belonging to the tribe, consisting of land, paddy field and orchard).  All ancestral property is vested in the female members of the tribe who hold the property in trust for the tribe.  It cannot be disposed of by any Will and can only by inherited by female tribe members in equal shares, while the men have no claim to it.    Customary land can only be owned by female members of the tribe.   According to Adat Pepatih, a man is a member of his mother's tribe until he marries and is accepted into his wife's tribe.   He is the salaried worker in the tribal system.  The descent line and lineage membership passes through the women.   Acquired property (includes property existing at the time of marriage and which can be divided into 3 categories: (i) Harta sepencarian property acquired jointly by the parties during their marriage. (ii) Harta pembawa property belonging to the husband before marriage. (iii) Harta dapatan property owned by the wife at the time of the marriage.   Property in possession of wife before marriage - Shall go to her customary heirs upon her death. Property brought by the husband into the marriage - Will revert to his customary heirs upon his death Property acquired during marriage - No issue resulting from marriage - Property will devolve on the wife upon the husband's death, and vise versa. Children in the marriage - Property will pass onto the surviving spouse and children.

 

Adat Temenggong - based on patrilineal principles of customary law, and fundamentally based on Islamic principles, or Hukum Syara.  The distribution of the deceased's estate is set out on the following provisions: (a) A daughter is entitled to one half of the entitlement of the son (e.g. if the son is entitled to a half share, the daughter will only be entitled to a quarter share). (b) If there is no son, a daughter is entitled to half of the deceased's estate. (c) If the deceased has two daughters and no son, the daughters will be entitled to two-thirds of the estate in equal share. (d) The wife or wives of the deceased will be entitled to one quarter of the deceased's estate if there are no children in the marriage.  If there are children, the wife or wives will be eligible to only one-eighth of the estate. (e) A husband is entitled to half of the wife's estate if there are no children.  If there are children, the husband is entitled to a quarter of the estate. (f) The father or mother of the deceased who died leaving children is entitled to one-sixth each of the deceased's estate. The above principles and other conditions contained in the Hukum Syara have been applied by the society practising the Adat Temenggong in most of the Malay states, except in Negeri Sembilan where Adat Pepatih applies.

B.  SABAH AND SARAWAK

Hereunder are better-known indigenous groups, Ibans and Dusun:

 

IBAN (i) Definition of a Family Unit The basic unit of Iban social and legal organisation is the bilik (Malay word for "room").  The Iban longhouse is primarily an aggregation of independently owned family apartments.  Each apartment is called a bilik, which is occupied by a particular family group.   An individual is born into a particular bilik, either of the father or mother, and may also become a member of a bilik by adoption.  The adopted persons are normally close kin and become full members of the bilik. (ii) Principle of Inheritance Fundamentally based on the membership of the bilik, and one's sex or status in the family is not an issue.  Therefore, so long as an individual remains a resident member of his or her bilik either by birth, adoption or marriage, that particular person possesses full and equal rights of inheritance. If a man dies as a member of his natal or adoptive bilik, all property he had acquired is inherited equally by the surviving members of that bilik which consists of his parents, wife and children, and also any brother or sister and their spouses, and the children who are still resident members. If a man dies as a member of the bilik into which he has married, all property he had acquired would remain in the bilik which includes his parents-in-law, wife and children, his wife's siblings and their spouses and children who are resident members. The same applies to a woman. (iii) Wills versus Adat Laws Wills are generally unknown among the Ibans as Adat Laws have provided for the disposal of a deceased's property.  In the case of  Sat anak/lelaki Akum and Anor V. Randung anak/lelaki Charaeng, it held that an Iban can make a valid written will and dispose absolutely the property which he had acquired during his lifetime.   However, there are certain properties he cannot Will away, e.g. land held under customary tenure if there are heirs entitled to exercise farming rights.

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