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Lack Of Love Not Enough – Akwa Ibom Court Rejects Divorce Petition After 43-Year Marriage
Lack Of Love Not Enough – Akwa Ibom Court Rejects Divorce Petition After 43-Year Marriage
Akwa Ibom High Court in Uyo has dismissed a divorce petition involving a marriage spanning over 43 years.
Justice Archibong Archibong ruled that lack of love and mutual respect alone are insufficient grounds for divorce.
The petitioner, Ernest Ekpenyonh Emah, failed to establish the statutory requirements under the Matrimonial Causes Act.
The court held that claiming irretrievable breakdown without supporting evidence is insufficient to secure a divorce.
Respondent’s counsel, Godwin Edoho, welcomed the judgement and commended the court.
Channel
November 13, () – An Akwa Ibom State High Court sitting in Uyo has dismissed a petition seeking the dissolution of a marriage that has lasted over 43 years, ruling that lack of love and mutual respect between spouses does not, on its own, constitute sufficient legal grounds for divorce.
The court, presided over by Justice Archibong Archibong, on Friday, November 13, held that the petitioner, Ernest Ekpenyonh Emah, failed to establish the legally recognised grounds required to dissolve his marriage to Grace Ernest Emah.
Delivering judgement in suit number HU/4D/2023, Ernest Ekpenyonh Emah v. Grace Ernest Emah, the judge ruled that the petitioner failed to prove the conditions stipulated under Sections 15(2)(c) and 16(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act.
Justice Archibong explained that although the law provides specific circumstances under which a marriage may be dissolved, the petitioner neither adequately pleaded the necessary facts in his application nor presented sufficient evidence to substantiate his claims.
The court further held that a general declaration that a marriage has broken down irretrievably, without establishing the legally recognised circumstances supporting such a claim, cannot justify the dissolution of the union.
It stressed that the absence of love and respect between married couples, standing alone, does not meet the legal threshold for granting a divorce.
Consequently, the court dismissed the petition for lacking the necessary legal and evidential foundation.
Reacting to the judgement, counsel to the respondent, Godwin Edoho, expressed satisfaction with the decision and commended the presiding judge for upholding the law and delivering justice.
The ruling reinforces the position that dissatisfaction, loss of affection or strained relations between spouses, without proof of the statutory grounds for divorce, cannot automatically bring a marriage to an end under Nigerian law.
