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Division of Assets of the Spouses re: Cohabitation and Customary Law Union

HH43-12 : SHELTER MAVATA vs JAMES CHIBANDE
Ruled By: OMERJEE J and HLATSHWAYO J

This is an appeal against the decision of the Chitungwiza magistrate handed down on 25 March 2009, awarding the appellant 15% of the value of the immovable property acquired by the parties during the subsistence of their four year unregistered customary law marriage.The plaintiff listed her grounds of appeal as ...
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HH60-11 : CONSTANTINE MABAUDI vs VIOLA MHORA
Ruled By: KARWI J and CHITAKUNYE J

This is an appeal against the order of the Magistrate in the court a quo. The grounds of appeal are that the learned magistrate in the court a quo had erred and misdirected herself in not raising meru motu the issue of jurisdiction as the claim was in excess of the jurisdiction of the ...
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HH133-11 : PLAXEDES MUKONDE vs PAUL ZENGENI
Ruled By: GUVAVA J and MAWADZE J

This is an appeal against a judgment by the Mutare Magistrates' Court delivered on 16 June 2009. The appellant appeals only against the award made in relation to the immovable property. In the grounds of appeal the appellant attacked the magistrate's findings that she was only entitled to a 5% share in the property ...
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HB40-11 : TINASHE CHIKARA vs VENNAH MATIKA
Ruled By: MATHONSI J

The plaintiff instituted proceedings against the defendant alleging, in the declaration, that the two (2) were customarily married in 1998 and that during the subsistence of that union they acquired items of property, namely, Stand 4013, Nkulumane, Bulawayo, Mazda 323 motor vehicle, fridge, stove, kitchen unit, colour television, cellphone and line and lounge suit. He averred ...
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HB77-11 : NUTE NCUBE vs SHEILA MAGLAZI
Ruled By: KAMOCHA J and CHEDA J

This is an appeal against the decision of the Magistrate Court sitting in Bulawayo. The parties were married to each other under customary law and stayed together for a period of six (6) years. The marriage irretrievably broke down and the trial court “dissolved” it and thereafter distributed the shares in the immovable property, ...
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HB10-10 : NORAH NCUBE vs ALBERT GUMBO and REGISTRAR OF DEEDS
Ruled By: KAMOCHA J

The applicant alleged that it was all her money which was used to purchase the house in 1997 when she worked as a domestic worker. She was financially assisted by her employers to pay for the house. The respondent only came into her life in 1999 long after she had secured the house. She serviced the ...
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HB118-11 : FANI MULEYA vs ROSINA MULEYA
Ruled By: NDOU J and MATHONSI J

The respondent issued summons out of the Gwanda Magistrates' Court against the appellant to which was attached an affidavit sworn to by herself and annexures to the affidavit listing property valued at US$6,730= acquired by the parties. In the affidavit, she alleged that she was customarily married to the appellant and their union was ...
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HB119-10 : NYARADZAI KAZUVA vs GILBERT DUBE
Ruled By: CHEDA J and MATHONSI J

The respondent in this matter issued summons out of the Magistrates Court of Bulawayo on the 14th August 2008. In that summons he claimed a “sharing of property” and “custody of children”.At the same time, the respondent filed an affidavit, sworn to by himself, in which he alleged that he ...
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HH02-13 : RUMBIDZAI SHAAMANO vs JABULANI NKOSI
Ruled By: CHITAKUNYE J

In the alternative, the plaintiff alleged that the plaintiff and defendant entered into a tacit universal partnership and that such partnership had now come to an end. She thus sought an order:(a) Declaring that a partnership existed between the plaintiff and defendant;(b) That the plaintiff be declared the owner of assets in part 1 ...
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HH133-11 : PLAXEDES MUKONDE vs PAUL ZENGENI
Ruled By: GUVAVA J and MAWADZE J

The second error related to the fact that although the parties stated that general law principles should apply to their case no recognized cause of action was pleaded in their papers. I can do no better than refer to the case of Feremba v Matika 2007 (1) ZLR 337 where MAKARAU JP…., stated as ...
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HB42-13 : LILIAN MOYO vs DOUGLAS CHIDUMO
Ruled By: NDOU J and KAMOCHA J

The parties were living together between 1988 and 2006. During this period, the appellant acquired and registered, in her name, property known as 23383 Pumula South, Bulawayo. The parties were neither married in terms of the Marriage Act [Chapter 5:11] nor the Customary Marriages Act [Chapter 5:07]. In the Magistrates' Court, the issue was whether ...
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HB118-11 : FANI MULEYA vs ROSINA MULEYA
Ruled By: NDOU J and MATHONSI J

As if that was not enough, the respondent sought a division of property on the basis of an unregistered customary law union. She did not plead any other recognisable cause of action like joint ownership, tacit universal partnership, unjust enrichment and/or equity. Unregistered customary law unions are still not recognised marriages in our law and as ...
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HH35-16 : SHINGISAI MARYLN NYAMUKUSA vs GILBERT KARENGA MASWERA
Ruled By: UCHENA J

The plaintiff started off as the defendants' girlfriend. They, thereafter, had a child, Rosely Mufaro Maswera, born on 12 March 2007, graduating her to his small house. The defendant was old enough to be her father. He was 58 and she was 23 when they had their first child.The defendant was a married ...
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HB90-16 : L. SACRE KWETE MINGA vs ITAYI MATIVONESE GUNDA
Ruled By: TAKUVA J

There is little, or no love, lost between the plaintiff and the defendant. The former instituted summons proceedings against the latter seeking: “(a) An order for the sharing of the parties' property on the basis of the parties' tacit universal partnership in terms of paragraph 8 of the plaintiff's declaration. (b) Costs of suit on an ...
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HH65-12 : CHARWADZA MADZWAWAWA vs ROSEMARY VAMBE
Ruled By: GUVAVA J and MAWADZE J

It is common cause that the parties are not legally married. The parties entered into a customary law union in 2002 and have been staying together as “husband and wife” to date….,. The appellant and the respondent are not legally married hence they may not be afforded the same protection as is provided in respect of parties ...
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HH86-12 : ELIJAH KASEZA vs LANGTON KASEZA and WINNIE MURAPE
Ruled By: MAVANGIRA J

This matter was initially set down for hearing on 11 June 2009 on which date it was postponed to 10 July 2009. It was again postponed a number of times and was finally heard on 3 February 2011 after which date the court called for supplementary heads of argument from ...
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HH120-12 : JOHN MAUCHAZA vs SARAH NOTA
Ruled By: GOWORA J and PATEL J

On 10 July 2006, the respondent herein, whom I shall refer to as the plaintiff, issued summons in the Magistrates Court, Harare against the appellant, the defendant, claiming “sharing of property.”Particulars of claim attached to the summons made reference to a customary union which resulted in the establishment of a ...
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HH49-10 : HENRY NYOKA vs JENNIFER MUREZA
Ruled By: MAVANGIRA J

The plaintiff issued summons for the ejectment of the defendant from House No.14 Msasa Park Drive, Msasa Park, Harare. The basis of the plaintiff's claim is that he is the sole owner of the immovable property.He avers that upon the termination of an unregistered union between him and the defendant, ...
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HH362-13 : THOMAS CHAURAYA vs PROGRESS MAKOKORO
Ruled By: MAWADZE J

The plaintiff, on 24 February 2011, issued summons out of this court seeking an order of sharing of the assets of the parties on the basis of the common law principle of unjust enrichment.In his declaration, the plaintiff stated that he entered into a customary law union with the defendant ...
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HH176-15 : BARBARA MAKAHAMADZE vs DOUGLAS MUTUVIRA
Ruled By: MWAYERA J

The plaintiff and the defendant were customarily married for about seven years, from 2002 to 2009, when the union became dysfunctional. During the subsistence of the union the parties, who were in universal partnership, acquired movable and immovable property.The parties agreed on issues for referral to trial, namely:-1. What constituted ...
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SC86-20 : CONSTANTINE CHIWENGA vs MARRY MUBAIWA
Ruled By: GWAUNZA DCJ, GARWE JA and BHUNU JA

This is an appeal against the whole judgment of the High Court handed down on 24 January 2020. The appeal seeks to impugn the court a quo's order awarding custody of the parties' three minor children to the respondent upon the separation of the parties.The appellant also challenges the jurisdiction ...
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HH42-08 : JAMESON MANDAVA vs TSITSI CHASWEKA
Ruled By: MAKARAU JP and HLATSHWAYO J

On 23 May 2005, the respondent issued summons out of Marondera Magistrates' Court. Her claim against the defendant, as it appears on the face of the summons, is recorded as “sharing property”. An affidavit was attached to the summons, curiously titled, in my view, as “Applicant's supporting affidavit (Property Sharing)”.In ...
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HMA01-19 : ANNA MAWARE vs EMMANUEL CHIWARE
Ruled By: MAFUSIRE J

For 31 years, the plaintiff and the defendant lived together as husband and wife in an unregistered customary law union (“the union”).During the subsistence of the union, the parties acquired a sizeable number of assets, both movable and immovable.The plaintiff said they pooled their resources and acquired those assets jointly. ...
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HMT08-19 : STELLA MASUNGA vs FORWARD KAPIYA
Ruled By: MWAYERA J and MUZENDA J

On 23 July 2018, Mr Forward Kapiya (the respondent) of Stand 254 Headlands Location issued summons at Rusape Magistrate's Court against the appellant, Stella Masunga, where he was seeking eviction of the appellant from a commercial Stand No.193, Headlands known as Kapiya General Dealer.In the summons, he averred that the ...
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