Formality of Statutory Marriage in Nigeria: Need for a Policy-Driven Construction of the Marriage Act

The Nigerian Marriage Act 1914 provides certain preliminary formalities which a prospec- tive couple should comply with before celebrating statutory marriage. An examination of the reported decisions shows that the Act’s potency is whittled down because the courts have failed to purposively construe its salient provisions. Even though the Act is a century old, no social or moral development justifies a change; so little is suggested to reform the formality part of the Act. Rather, the article undertakes a diligent examination of the Act to ascertain its object, and finds that it is the promotion of monogamy in a society where, for the most part polygamy is the norm. It proffers a construction of the Act that promotes this object. It also suggests a stern judicial attitude that urges each prospective spouse to consci- entiously address his/her mind to his/her self-serving obligation to comply with the prelimi- nary formalities in the Act