How to get a divorce in Cameroon ~ Kinsmen Advocates Law Firm

Marriage is an institution ordained by God as the Holy Scriptures says “A man shall leave his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh”. Divorce in Cameroon remains the only recognized legal way of bringing a lawfully contracted marriage to an end and resolving custody of children cases. The sole ground for divorce in Cameroon is that the marriage has broken down irretrievably. The relevant divorce laws in Cameroon are; Matrimonial Causes Act, 1973 read alongside section 18 of law no. 2006/015 of 29 December 2006 as amended and supplemented by law no. 2011/027 of 14 December 2011 on judicial organization and the family procedure rules, 2010. Divorce in Cameroon A marriage is said to have broken down irretrievably where the petitioner established any of the under-listed grounds in court: Non – Consummation of the marriage That one of the spouses has committed adultery That since the marriage, the behaviour of one of the spouses is intolerable Desertion of one of the spouses for a continuous period of one year That the spouses have lived apart for a continuous period of two years immediately before the petition and the respondent does not object Absence of one of the spouses for a long time to be presumed absence. The basis of Cameroonian court assuming jurisdiction is domicile which is determined by the matrimonial home of the spouse and the appropriate court is the High Court. “Should I get a divorce” is the most widely asked question by a spouse who is in doubt who is in doubt on whether to institute a divorce case? Some decisive criteria include refusal to have sexual intercourse with your spouse without reasonable justification, the continuous beating of your spouse, refusal to eat spouse food, unjustifiable late nights, marriage on deceit or misrepresentation.