23/09/2026
Can your spouse claim a property you acquired before marriage?
The simple answer is that a spouse does not automatically become a co-owner of property merely because of marriage. A house, land, business or investment acquired before the marriage will ordinarily remain the property of the person who acquired it. However, describing an asset as “premarital property” may not completely resolve the matter where payments, construction, improvements or other substantial contributions continued during the marriage.
Section 72(1) of the Matrimonial Causes Act empowers the court, during matrimonial proceedings, to make a property-settlement order for the benefit of either spouse or the children of the marriage where the court considers the order just and equitable. This does not create an automatic 50:50 sharing formula. The court examines the particular circumstances of the marriage, the property concerned and the evidence presented by both parties.
In SUNMONU v SUNMONU (2021) LPELR-56002(CA), the Court of Appeal explained that the date on which a property was originally acquired may not always end the enquiry. Where the property was purchased before marriage but payment was completed during the marriage, or where substantial development occurred during the marriage, the contribution of the other spouse may become relevant when the court considers an appropriate settlement.
A contribution does not always have to be a direct payment towards the purchase price. It may include paying for building materials, financing renovations, servicing a mortgage or maintaining the household while the other spouse committed income to the property. It may also include substantial assistance to a spouse’s business where the profits from that business were used to acquire or develop the disputed property.
Nevertheless, marriage alone does not entitle a spouse to half of every property belonging to the other spouse. In AGUOLU v AGUOLU (2025) LPELR-80269(CA), the Court of Appeal reaffirmed that a spouse seeking a share of matrimonial property must establish the relevant contribution. The court will consider when the property was acquired, what each party contributed and what outcome would be just, fair and equitable.
It is also important to distinguish ownership from occupation. A court may permit a spouse and the children to continue living in the matrimonial home without transferring legal ownership of that property to them. An order granting possession or occupation is not necessarily an order making the occupying spouse a co-owner. The exact relief granted will depend on the pleadings, evidence and circumstances of the family.
Any spouse claiming an interest should preserve bank statements, transfer receipts, building invoices, mortgage records, messages concerning payments, business records and evidence from contractors or witnesses. Assertions such as “I supported my spouse” or “we built it together” may not be sufficient without credible evidence connecting that contribution to the acquisition, completion, preservation or substantial improvement of the particular property in dispute.
The practical lesson is that property acquired before marriage is not automatically available for equal sharing, but neither is it always completely insulated from consideration. Couples should properly document property contributions and obtain legal advice before selling, transferring, mortgaging or claiming an interest in disputed assets. Every case ultimately depends on its facts, the applicable marriage regime and the quality of the evidence before the court.
