Property Rights of Women Married under Customary Law: Review of Arajulu v. Monday

Abstract

Under customary law, women are regarded as subordinates to husbands and are deprived of equal rights to the matrimonial property where a dissolution marriage occurs. This practice of denying women equal property rights is repugnant to the principles of natural justice. This article adopts the desktop research to examine the decision in Arajulu v. Monday where ownership of property acquired during the subsistence of a customary law marriage was determined. It examines if adequate monetary consideration is sufficient alone to determine the legal ownership of property acquired during the subsistence of marriage. It found that in determining ownership rights under customary law marriage, strict rules of ownership or proofed title should not be adopted. This case addressed for the first time owner of the property for women married under customary law. It concludes by advocating that courts rely on the rules of natural justice when determining ownership of matrimonial property. Keywords: Customary law; Property; Rights; Married women; Marriage