Wakilii

Johnson v Johnson (Divorce Cause No. 55 of 1949)

East African Court of Appeal · [1950] EACA 627 · 1950 Petition Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Petition for decree of nullity of marriage on grounds of respondent's impotence
Decision
Marriage declared void ab initio; decree nisi of nullity granted, to be made absolute in six weeks

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

The Court held it had jurisdiction to hear a nullity petition where the petitioner was bona fide resident in Kenya with a domicile of choice, even though the respondent's domicile was not established as Kenyan. Following English law under the Matrimonial Causes Ordinance, a voidable marriage does not affect the petitioner's domicile of choice. The Court granted a decree of nullity on proof of the respondent's impotence at the time of marriage.

Outcome

Marriage declared void ab initio; decree nisi of nullity granted, to be made absolute in six weeks

Facts

Petitioner, a widow resident in Kenya for 20 years with real property in Nairobi, married respondent before the Registrar of Marriages, Mombasa, on 30 April 1948. Neither party had a Kenya domicile of origin, but petitioner had acquired a Kenya domicile of choice. After marriage, petitioner discovered respondent was impotent and had been so for a number of years, a fact he had not disclosed before marriage. Respondent refused to submit to medical examination. The marriage was never consummated. Petitioner sought a decree of nullity on grounds of respondent's impotence. Respondent did not appear or contest the proceedings.

Issues

  1. Whether the Court had jurisdiction to hear a nullity petition where the petitioner had a Kenya domicile of choice but the respondent's domicile was uncertain.
  2. Whether a petitioner's domicile of choice is affected by a voidable marriage to a respondent whose domicile is not established as being in Kenya.
  3. Whether a decree of nullity should issue on the ground of the respondent's impotence at the time of marriage.

Orders

  • Decree nisi of nullity granted.
  • Decree may be made absolute in six weeks from the date of judgment.
  • Marriage declared void ab initio to all intents and purposes whatsoever.
  • Respondent ordered to pay the costs of the suit.

Rules and key headnotes

Family Law — Nullity of Marriage — Jurisdiction — Domicile of Petitioner in Voidable Marriage
In nullity proceedings concerning a voidable marriage, the petitioner's domicile of choice is not affected by the domicile of the respondent, and the Court has jurisdiction so long as the petitioner is bona fide resident in the jurisdiction.
Statutory Interpretation — Application of English Law — Matrimonial Causes
Where a statute provides that the Court's jurisdiction shall be exercised in accordance with the law applied in matrimonial proceedings in the High Court of Justice in England, the Court will follow English precedent on jurisdictional questions in nullity proceedings.
Family Law — Nullity of Marriage — Impotence — Non-Disclosure
Where a respondent fails to disclose impotence existing at the time of marriage and refuses to submit to medical examination, and the petitioner's evidence is corroborated, the Court may exercise its discretion to grant a decree of nullity.
Family Law — Domicile — Domicile of Choice — Widow
A widow is free to abandon her deceased husband's domicile and acquire a domicile of choice through residence and intention to make a jurisdiction her permanent home.

Legislation cited (3)

  • Matrimonial Causes Ordinance s.13(1)
  • Matrimonial Causes Ordinance s.4(c)
  • Matrimonial Causes Ordinance s.3

Cases cited (3)

  • Hutter v Hutter (1944) 2 All ER 368
  • Easterbrook v Easterbrook (1944) 113 LJP 17
  • Inverclyde v Inverclyde (1931) 47 LTR 140

Full judgment

↓ Download PDF

The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Johnson v Johnson (Divorce Cause No. 55 of 1949) [1950] EACA 627 (1 January 1950)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.