Almost every legal question a woman asks us — can I divorce him, what am I entitled to, who gets the children, can I claim maintenance — has the same first answer, which is another question. What kind of marriage is it?
Nigeria runs three systems of family law side by side. They are genuinely different, not variations on a theme, and they lead to different courts, different procedures and different outcomes on identical facts.
A surprising number of people are unsure which one they are in, including people who have been married for twenty years.
Statutory marriage
A marriage under the Marriage Act, conducted at a marriage registry, or in a licensed place of worship by a licensed minister with a registrar’s certificate. It produces a marriage certificate issued under the Act.
It is monogamous in law. It can only be dissolved by a court, and only under the Matrimonial Causes Act, in the High Court.
The important point: a church wedding is not automatically a statutory marriage. It is one if the place of worship was licensed and the correct certificate was obtained. A great many couples had a large church wedding and are not married under the Act, and only find out when they try to divorce. If you have a certificate, look at what it actually says.
Customary marriage
A marriage under the custom of the relevant community, which typically involves the two families, the payment of bride price and a ceremony. Rules vary from community to community; there is no single customary law.
It is potentially polygamous. It is dissolved in a Customary Court, and the process is generally quicker, cheaper and less formal than a High Court divorce. In many communities dissolution is connected to the return of bride price, which is a whole subject of its own — how that works, and who it is really aimed at is dealt with separately.
Some states have registration for customary marriages and a certificate to go with it. Where there is none, proving the marriage happened at all can become a live issue, which is why photographs, the list of who was present and any receipts are worth keeping. Keeping copies applies here more than most people expect.
Islamic marriage
A marriage under Islamic law, governed by Islamic personal law and heard in a Sharia Court in states that have them, with Sharia Courts of Appeal above them.
It is potentially polygamous. There are established routes to dissolution, including divorce pronounced by the husband, divorce sought by the wife in return for giving something back, and dissolution granted by a court on specified grounds such as cruelty, failure to maintain or desertion.
Two things are worth knowing. A wife has real routes out and is not dependent on his agreement, though the process differs from the statutory one. And the dower agreed at marriage is hers, not the family’s, and what happens to it depends on how the marriage is ended. How these courts work in practice is set out separately.
Marriages that are both
This is extremely common and it confuses everybody.
Many couples do the traditional ceremony and then a registry or licensed church wedding. Where the statutory marriage was validly contracted, that is the one that governs, and it is the High Court and the Matrimonial Causes Act that apply.
Doing the traditional rites first and never completing a statutory marriage leaves you with a customary marriage, whatever the reception looked like.
And a statutory marriage does not become customary because the couple later lived by custom. If it was validly contracted under the Act, it stays under the Act until a court ends it.
Why it changes what you can ask for
How it ends. A statutory marriage needs a High Court petition, and the ground is that the marriage has broken down irretrievably, proved by one of a defined set of facts — behaviour you cannot reasonably be expected to live with, desertion, adultery, or a period of living apart among them. There is also a restriction on petitioning within the first two years of marriage without the court’s permission. A customary or Islamic marriage ends by a different route entirely, usually faster. The divorce process goes through this properly.
What you can claim. A High Court hearing a statutory divorce has broad powers over maintenance and property. A Customary Court’s powers are narrower. That difference is one of the main reasons the type of marriage matters financially. What maintenance is available and how property is decided are dealt with separately.
Which court decides about the children. The welfare of the child is the governing principle in the statutory courts and under the Child’s Rights Act, while customary systems have historically leaned towards the father’s family. Which court hears it therefore matters enormously, and it is one of the first things a lawyer will look at.
Inheritance. This is where the difference is starkest, and it is the reason widows lose everything. A statutory marriage brings statutory succession rules. A customary marriage may leave the widow’s position dependent on custom, and some customs are extremely unfavourable. If you are widowed and being told the property belongs to his family, get advice rather than accepting it — the courts have struck down a number of customs of that kind.
How to find out which you have
- Look for a certificate and read what it says. A marriage certificate issued under the Marriage Act names the Act and the registry or licensed place of worship.
- Ask where the wedding was conducted and by whom, and whether a registrar was involved.
- Check whether bride price was paid and rites performed, which points to a customary marriage.
- Check whether there was a registry appointment at any point, including a small one before or after the ceremony.
- If in doubt, take everything you have to a lawyer. Certificate, photographs, invitation card, receipts. It takes one appointment to settle.
If there is no certificate anywhere
You are not in a weak position, but you should establish the facts early rather than in the middle of a dispute.
Collect what proves the marriage happened: photographs, the list of who attended, receipts, correspondence, anything from either family. Where there is a registration scheme in your state for customary marriages, ask whether yours can be registered now.
Do this before there is a disagreement. Proving a marriage is much harder when the other family has an interest in saying it never happened.
Questions people ask
We married in church. Is that a statutory marriage?
Only if the place of worship was licensed and the correct registrar’s certificate was obtained. Many large church weddings are not statutory marriages, and couples usually discover this when they try to divorce. Read what your certificate actually says.
We did the traditional ceremony and then the registry. Which one counts?
Where the statutory marriage was validly contracted, that is the one that governs, and it must be ended in the High Court under the Matrimonial Causes Act.
Is a customary marriage easier to end?
Generally quicker, cheaper and less formal, and heard in a Customary Court. The trade is that the court’s powers over maintenance and property are narrower than a High Court’s.
Can I be protected from violence if my marriage is customary or Islamic?
Yes. Criminal law and protection orders apply regardless of which system your marriage falls under. The marriage type affects how it is ended and what you can claim, not whether you are protected.
His family says the house is theirs now that he has died. Is that right?
Do not accept it without advice. Widows are routinely told this, the position depends on which system governed the marriage, and the courts have struck down a number of customs that disinherit widows.
If you need help now
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Before you rely on anything on this page
We publish these articles so that you can understand a subject and work out what to ask for. They are written carefully and in good faith. They are still general information about how things usually work, and not advice about your situation, which we do not know.
- This is not legal advice.
- We are not a law firm. Criminal law in Nigeria is largely a state matter, the VAPP Act applies in a state only if that state adopted it, and statutory, customary and Islamic marriages are governed by different law and different courts. Two people with the same facts can have genuinely different options. Get advice from a lawyer who practises where you live — and if cost is the obstacle, ask us, because arranging that is part of what we do.
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