By Tata Mbunwe
A major shift is underway in Cameroon’s divorce law, with courts in the English-speaking regions now permitting couples to file for divorce without proving any fault from their spouse. All they need to do is to file a statement of irretrievable breakdown, without having to accuse their partner of committing any fault.
In a recent interview with Cameroon Tribune, Barrister Nfor Dieudonne Nkeh, a Buea-based legal practitioner with the Supreme Courts of Cameroon and Nigeria, detailed the legal changes that have transformed divorce proceedings in the North West and South West Regions, which practice the English Common Law system.
Previously, couples could only obtain a divorce by proving one of five facts: adultery, unreasonable behaviour, desertion for two years, two-year separation with consent, or five-year separation without consent.
This was in accordance with Section 11 of the Southern Cameroons High Court Law 1955 (SCHL 1955), which provides that the High Court shall apply Common Law, Doctrines of Equity, and Statutes of General Application in force in England on 1st January 1900.
For divorce, courts imported the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973 (MCA 1973), which required proof of irretrievable breakdown through one of the five facts.
The new law, which is the English Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020 (DDSA 2020), also known as the No-Fault Divorce Law, came into force in England on 6th April 2022.
It amends sections 1–5 of the MCA 1973, abolishing the five former grounds. Couples now simply file a “Statement of Irretrievable Breakdown,” which the court must accept as conclusive evidence that the marriage can no longer work.
Unofficially, the Fako High Court in Buea was the first to enforce the new law in early 2024, when a judge accepted an application for divorce based solely on a statement, without requiring proof of unreasonable behaviour from the applicant.
The Kumba (Meme) and Mamfe (Manyu) High Courts followed, according to Barrister Nfor. The Bamenda High Court (Mezam) has been more conservative, with some judges still demanding the five facts, though recent filings in 2025 show growing acceptance.
Barrister Nfor said the change may lead to a short-term spike in divorce filings.
“In the short term, yes, with a slight increase in divorce filings. England saw a 12% increase after April 2022 when the law came into effect,” he said. “Because many people were trapped in dead marriages, but feared the shame of blaming their spouses publicly.”
In the long term, however, he believes the law will stabilise marriages.
“Evidence from the United Kingdom and Australia shows divorce rates level off after two to three years. No-fault Divorce Law does not create unhappy marriages; it just provides a dignified exit for already broken ones.”
He added that Cameroon’s divorce rate is artificially low due to cost, shame, and the blame requirement, and that the new law “may reveal the true rate.”