By: Kendi Latoya

Following our previous Article which comprehensively highlighted the various grounds of divorce depending on the type of marriage, we shall now look into the divorce process in Kenya.

In Kenya, the divorce process has the following stages:

a. Drafting and Filing of the petition for divorce

In this stage, a divorce petition is filed stipulating the grounds for divorce that shall be relied on by the Petitioner. The petition is prepared and filed together with the following accompanying documents being a verifying affidavit; duly authenticated marriage certificate; list of witnesses; written witness statements and list of documents which are the evidential documents that the petitioner shall rely on in the hearing.

b. Notice to appear

After filing the petition together with the accompanying documents, a notice to appear is sent to the other spouse who shall be the respondent in the case. The purpose of the notice to appear is for the respondent to inform the court whether he/she shall be contesting the divorce, in the event that they shall be contesting the same, they are given a period of 15 days to respond to the same.

c. Response of the respondent if the divorce is contested

In the instance that the respondent, being the other spouse contests to the divorce. A response has to be filed by the respondent and served upon the petitioner. In the event that the divorce is uncontested, it is advisable that the other spouse ignores the petition.

d. Registrar’s certificate

Once the fifteen (15) day period lapses, the lawyer is required to make an application for a registrar’s certificate in court, certifying that the petition can proceed to the hearing stage.

e. Hearing of the case

On this stage, the petitioner will present their evidence showing that the marriage has irretrievably broken down and call upon his/her witnesses. In the instance that the marriage is contested, then the respondent, being the other spouse, shall also present their evidence and call upon his/her witnesses. The court shall thereafter set a date for judgement.

f. Judgement

Based on the evidence that has been provided, then the court will at this stage determine whether the grounds for divorce are sufficient to dissolve the marriage. In the instance that the court finds them sufficient, then a decree nisi is issued for one (1) month.

This period is provided for the spouses to decide whether they want to make the divorce final or not and to provide an opportunity for reconciliation prior to the divorce being rendered final. If the spouses decide that they do not intend to have the divorce finalized, then they can inform the court and the decree nisi will be done away with and they shall remain married.

g. Decree absolute

This is the final decree dissolving the marriage after the lapse of the one (1) month period after the decree nisi.

In case of any queries on the above subject, kindly contact us on: info@kendikadvocates.co.ke or call us on +254768028504