By Yejide Gbenga-Ogundare
Valentine is in two days and after this celebration, many couples may be facing challenges and legal battles. This is because a lot of cheating goes on around this period. But the fact is that the law only recognises infidelity within the context of marriage, that is, adultery. You can only legally enforce your rights against a cheating partner in a marriage and not in a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship or any kind of relationship other than marriage.
The only exception to this can only be in the case of breach of promise to marry. There are three major legal consequences of Adultery in Nigeria; imprisonment for a term of two years and/or with a fine imposed by the court but this only applies in Northern states in Nigeria, as provided under Sections 387 and 388 of the Penal Code Act.
The second consequence is in a case when an individual whose spouse cheats can file a petition for dissolution of the marriage, that is divorce under 15(2) (b) of the Matrimonial Causes Act and the third case is when the petitioner sues the person with whom his/her partner cheated, for damages as provided under Section 31 of the Matrimonial Causes Act.
Divorce is a recognisable legal consequence of adultery and to obtain an order of court for the dissolution of marriage, the partner seeking the divorce must prove that the marriage has broken down irretrievably; the marriage has failed and cannot be made to work again.
The Matrimonial Causes Act under section 15(2)(b) provides that the court hearing a petition for divorce shall hold the marriage to have broken down irretrievably if the respondent has committed adultery and the petitioner finds it intolerable to live with the respondent. Adultery is often proven by circumstantial evidence. Circumstantial evidence does not directly prove a fact in question, instead it leads to a logical conclusion that the fact exists, requiring additional reasonable inferences to support the claim. Some of the circumstances from which adultery could be inferred include: venereal disease, frequent brothel visits, birth of a child or confession/ admission.
An aggrieved partner can join the co-adulterer; person with whom his/her partner cheated, as a party to the divorce petition and demand an award of damages against him/her as the case may be. In awarding damages for adultery, the court will consider the following: loss suffered by the petitioner, injury to petitioner’s honor and feelings, hurt to family life, value of the adulterous spouse to the claimant