The Constitutional Court has declared as unconstitutional a section of the Divorce Act and it has given Parliament 24 hours to remedy the situation. Ordinarily, an individual married out of community of property without accrual can’t claim from their spouse’s estate if they divorce. This has left many stay-at-home wives at risk of financial ruin should they divorce.

Section 7(3) of the act allows the courts to divvy up the assets in a more fair and equitable way if that individual can show they made a significant non-financial contribution to the marriage. But this only applies if they were married pre-1984, when the option of marriage out of community of property with accrual was introduced in South Africa.

Guest: Nthabiseng Dubazane ,Attorney and director at Dubazane Attorneys