Inheritance Laws, Wills and Women: A Study of Esan People of Edo State, South-South Nigeria.

Devolution of property in Nigeria is either through intestate succession, that is when a deceased dies without leaving a Will or through the testate succession which have to do with the application of the relevant statue. The intestate succession has to do with the customary laws and rules which dictate how property of a deceased who died intestate is to be shared while the testate succession comes in the form of a Will which is a creation of relevant statue having the force of law. Wills are means through which women and girls alike are considered in the inheritance of their husbands and/or fathers properties. Studies have shown that a good way to ensure women and girls inheritance rights is through the application of Wills, as against customary laws, in the sharing of a deceased property. But in Nigeria the devolution of property of a deceased is mostly governed by the customary laws of the land. Customary laws of Esan people do not favour the women group, especially when it comes to inheritance of property. In the light of this development, this study attempts to answer the following questions: What is the level of awareness of devolution of property by Wills among the study population? Have the devolution of property by Wills gained wide acceptance among the study population? Have the application of Wills being able to improve the status of women in the study population? The data for this study shall be collected through the application of questionnaire and in-depth interview of key respondents. Multistage sampling methods shall also be employed in selecting relevant respondents for the study. It is expected that the findings from this study shall help us to suggest some useful recommendations.