Laws Of Marriage In Nigeria

Nigeria is as pluralistic in her legal systems as she is in ethnic make ups. There are essentially 3 structures of regulation in Nigeria I.E the English law, Customary law and Islamic law (also referred to as Sharia law).

Each of these legal guidelines has its device of marriage, though they have got their variations and similarities. All the 3 structures of marriage are identical at least in terms in their recognition as marriage that would be legally shrunk in Nigeria by way of all of us who wishes.

It is viable for someone to agreement  marriages, one beneath the Customary regulation and the other beneath the Islamic law but this is unacceptable as a long way as English law is involved.

It is important at this factor to have a have a look at every of the marriages with a few details.

English Law Marriage

Contracting marriages in line with the tenets of the English law is ruled via the Marriage Act in Nigeria. As a long way back as 1860 the courtroom had, in Hyde vs. Hyde, described marriage as " the voluntary union for existence of 1 man and one woman to the exclusion of all others". This has been regularly occurring as the which means of the English law marriage ever due to the fact that. This sort of marriage certainly abhors polygamy.

For a marriage to be legitimate and certified as an English regulation marriage in Nigeria, the below listed conditions stipulated by the Marriage Act should be complied with.

Conditions for Valid English Law Marriage

Parties to the wedding have to have agreed to be husband and wife
The man must have filed a be aware in the Marriage Registry in the location wherein the wedding is to be celebrated, pointing out his aim to get married
The observe is then entered inside the Marriage Notice Book with the aid of the registrar
The word stays open for a minimum of 21 days before the Registrar can issue Marriage Certificate
During the 21 days, anyone who so desires may enter a caveat as an objection to the deliberate marriage
At this point, the Registrar will refer the caveat to the High Court so as to decide the fate of the caveat one way or the alternative
Where the caveat is held valid by means of the High Court, the Registrar could be stopped from issuing the Marriage Certificate till the objection raised inside the caveat ceases to exist
Where the High Court invalidates the caveat, the Registrar will continue to trouble the Marriage Certificate. The issuance of the Marriage Certificate have to now not be in advance than 21 days or later than three months from the time of filling a note of goal to get married via the person.
Other Factors That May Prevent Issuance of the Marriage Certificate

Apart from any objection that may be contained in a caveat, the Registrar have to now not problem the Marriage Certificate in any of the following conditions:

where not one of the parties has been resident inside the region wherein the wedding is to be celebrated 15 days preceding the issuance of the marriage certificate
in which the Registrar is happy that one of the parties is a minor (I.E underneath age of sixteen)
where consent of one of the events to the marriage is obtained by fraud, dress, undue have an impact on, mistaken identity or a celebration incapable of giving consent because of mental unwell-health
where the parties have blood dating like cousins
in which one of the events is already married either below the English or Customary law.
Celebration of Marriage

The marriage itself can take place in either of  locations I.E the Marriage Registry or an area of worship.

In the case of the Marriage Registry, the subsequent conditions practice:

it must take region earlier than the registrar
there have to be at the least  witnesses, and
it have to take place between 10 am to 4pm.
While inside the case of an area of worship, the policies are these:

it have to be performed by a identified minister of the religious organisation involved
the area of worship ought to be a place licensed underneath the Marriage Act to behavior marriage
there must be minimum of  witnesses
earlier than conducting the marriage, the minister ought to be sure that the Marriage Certificate has been received via the parties
the wedding have to take location between 8am to 6pm
the minister must ship a replica of the Marriage Certificate to the Registrar of Marriage within 7 days of the wedding
English regulation marriage is the most complex to finish as might be seen later in the article, while compared to the alternative  structures of marriage in Nigeria.

Customary Law Marriage

Customary regulation marriage is the easiest marriage to contract in Nigeria. It is a marriage celebrated in line with the customs and traditions of any nearby tribe in Nigeria. In phrases of marriage, varied tribes in Nigeria have plenty in common.

Essentials of a Customary Law Marriage

Agreement among a man and a girl to be husband and spouse
Parental consent mainly that of the girl's facet
Payment of the dowry by means of the man to the lady's family
Handing over of the female to the person.
Once the above situations are fulfilled, a Customary regulation marriage is validly shrunk. This marriage contains polygamy so the man can marry as many other halves as he desires. In reality, there's no restrict to the wide variety of girls that a man can marry below numerous local customs in Nigeria.

Islamic Law Marriage

Islamic regulation marriage refers to a marriage celebrated by using  Muslims (I.E a male & a girl) in keeping with the dictates of the Sharia regulation. Islamic law permits a Muslim male to marry as much as 4 other halves provided that he will make sure equity, equity and justice amongst them.

To have a marriage validly celebrated consistent with the Islamic regulation, the following should be fulfilled:

the events to the marriage need to have agreed to marry every other
the consent of the lady's father or uncle or any male family member is compulsory
the person need to provide a gift( it could be money or an editorial) as dowry. The monetary cost of whatever is given ought to not be less than N5000. There is no maximum
birthday party of marriage itself need to be witnessed via the minimum of  witnesses.
Once the above necessities are met, an Islamic law marriage is deemed to have taken location.

What I even have planned to do with the aid of this text is to give succinct photograph of various marriages that Nigerians and Non-Nigerians residing in Nigeria can settlement depending on the character's preference.

The most effective marriage that isn't always loose for all is the Islamic law marriage that could most effective take location between a Muslim male and female. However, a Muslim male is authorized to marry a girl who belongs to "the People of the Book". This refers to Jewish or Christian females.

Apart from Christians and Jewish faithfuls, a Muslim male can not marry from every other religion. It is probably thrilling to listen that the communicate is the fate of a Muslim female. She can most effective marry a fellow Muslim male. This smacks of a diffused approach to win extra converts into the Islamic fold.

Having said that, I believe Nigeria is one of the international locations in which multiplicity of marital choices is well looked after. Although marriage between identical sex or those who are closely related by blood isn't always allowed and there's no indication that a good way to occur in no distant destiny.

It is quite humorous to notice that some people term marriage underneath the English regulation as "felony marriage" as if other marriages aren't. This is inaccurate. As a be counted of truth, all of the three marriages are legal.

Kehinde Adegbite, a attorney with ardour for writing on problems relating to law in a manner that lay human beings appreciate and might suitable to their everyday dwelling.