Woman wins annulment of secret marriage

A WOMAN who out of the blue discovered that she was "legally married" to her former lover, against whom she had obtained a domestic violence interdict, was successful in her court bid to be restored to her single status.

- ZELDA VENTER

She had turned to the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, to have the registration by home affairs of the "customary marriage" overturned.

She had discovered two years after the marriage was registered in 2014, that she was indeed married. The applicant, only identified as MM, told the court that she was never engaged nor married to SM (the respondent).

In a bizarre set of circumstances it turned out that SM turned to the court behind her back in 2014 to obtain an order directing Home Affairs to register their customary marriage. The order was obtained in her absence and no reasons were given in that application why the department refused to register their marriage without a court order.

Judge Graham Moshoana, who dealt with this application to have the 2014 order overturned, remarked that the previous order was granted "in error". He ordered Home Affairs to de-register the marriage.