Divorce

Divorce is the legal dissolution of a marriage. Under the Marriage Act 2014, a party to a marriage can petition the court for a decree for the dissolution of the marriage on the grounds of:

• Cruelty, whether mental or physical, inflicted by the other party on the petitioner or on the children, if any, of the marriage; or
• The irretrievable breakdown of the marriage Desertion by either party for at least three years immediately preceding the date of presentation of the petition;
• Exceptional depravity by either party
• One or more acts of adultery committed by the other party

We offer services to our clients with regards to Divorce through:

• Legal representation whether contested or uncontested
• Divorce mediation in the endgame of an out of court settlement

Separation

It is legally permissible for married couples basing on the same grounds of divorce to alternatively petition for grant of a judicial separation this is effective in giving the couples an enabling environment to reflect on divorce as an option or not.

We offer services to our clients with regards to separation through:

• Presentation of a petition for judicial separation.
• Advising if either separation or divorce is applicable in case to case basis.

Children Custody

Children form the cornerstone of the society and also the most vulnerable segment.

The children act defines child custody as he parental rights and duties that relate to the possession of the child.

There are two forms of child custody:

• Actual custody - Actual custody of a child refers to the actual possession of a child whether or not the possession is shared with the other parent or any other person. It’s the discretion of the court to state which parent the child will live with.
• Legal custody - Legal custody refers to the parental rights and duties in relation to possession of a child as are conferred on a person by a custody order. These include the responsibility to maintain a child.

Our services pertaining child custody involves but not limited to the following:

1. Application for parental sole and actual custody.
2. Defending against application for parental sole and actual custody.

Child Support and Provision

Article 53 (e) of the Constitution of Kenya stipulates; every child has the right to parental care and protection which includes equal responsibility of the mother and father to provide for the child, whether they are married to each other or not.

Our services with pertaining child support and provision include but not limited to:

• Application of parental child support.
• Defense to an application against parental child support.
• Appeal against a parental child support award.

Parental Responsibilty Agreement

A Parental Responsibility Agreement provides parents who no longer live together, an amicable agreement that allows both of them to participate in the bringing up their children. The agreement is intended to deliberately capture the structure of child custody and extent of contribution of each parent as to the welfare of the child. Eventually for efficacy the agreement is registered in the Kenyan courts as an order so as to give consequential attributes in the event of contravention by either parent.

Our services pertaining Parental Responsibility Agreement include but not limited to:

1. Advising on the contents, obligations and structure of a Parental Responsibilty Agreement.
2. Drafting a reliable and effective Parental Responsibilty Agreement that will provide an efficient and seamless guideline on the conduct and relationship between estranged couples towards their shared children.

Pre-Nuptial Agreements

A PreNuptial Agreement is a legal agreement between a couple signed before they get married which sets forth the division of their assets in the event of divorce or death.

Our services with pertaining to pre-nuptial agreements include but not limited to:

• Advising the context, structure, requirements and validity of a pre-nuptial agreement
• Drafting a reliable Pre-nuptial agreement that safeguards the interest of the couples assets in the event of natural or artificial dissolution of their marriage

Division Of Matrimonial Property

The Matrimonial Property Act of 2013 defines matrimonial property as either the matrimonial home, household goods and items in the matrimonial home or any movable or immovable property that is jointly owned and acquired during the marriage. It excludes property that is held in trust or subject to pre-nuptial agreements by the spouses.

The division of matrimonial property in Kenya is guided by statutes as well as case law. To begin with, the Constitution of Kenya guarantees that parties to a marriage are entitled to equal rights even at the dissolution of the marriage. More importantly, the Constitution provides that every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law. This leaves it for the court to interpret what equal rights in the distribution of matrimonial property entails.

Our services pertaining division of matrimonial property include but not limited to:

• Advising on the pre-requisite list of proofs before petitioning for division of matrimonial property.
• Petitioning for the distribution of matrimonial property.
• Defending against petition for distribution of matrimonial property.

Child Adoption

Child adoption is the is the social, emotional, and legal process in which children who will not be raised by their birth parents become full and permanent legal members of another family while maintaining genetic and psychological connections to their birth family.

Our services with regards to child adoption in Kenya includes but not limited to:

• Advise on the eligibility of prospective parents in the adoption process
• Advise on the legal pre-requisite needed before adoption
• Advise on the actual process of adoption
• Facilitate the process of adoption in the relevant court
• Advise on the documentation need for the process of adoption
• Registration of child adoption
• Identification of competent registered adoption agencies

Surrogacy

Surrogacy is the process in which a woman carries and delivers a child for a couple or an individual. The process has to pass through a legal process.

Our services pertaining surrogacy involves but not limited to:

• Advising on the Laws and process of surrogacy in Kenya
• Drafting of surrogacy agreement
• Identification of competent and registered surrogacy clinics in Kenya

Guardianship

Child Guardianship

The Children Act defines a guardian broadly as any person who in the opinion of the court has charge or control of a child. This relates to any person who at any given time has physical possession of the child and is therefore responsible for the child. Unlike custody which allows a person extensive decision-making ability over the child, guardianship grants the guardian many of the same rights and responsibilities of a parent.

Our services pertaining child guardianship include but not limited to:

1. Advising on the qualification, scope and process of guardianship.
2. Fascilitation of child guardianship application in the relevant court.

Mental Guardianship

Mental guardianship or conservatorship in Kenya is guided by the mental act of Kenya. It involves the situational existence where a person is mental or cognitive incapacitated to carry out normal body functions or manage property well and hence it’s in the interest of able family members or close relative to take custody of management the aforesaid property and maintenance of the family members.

Our services pertaining mental guardianship include but not limited to:

• Advising the family or relatives of the person subject to guardianship the scope and process.
• Facilitation for the application for mental guardianship to the relevant competent court of jurisdiction.