Analysis of Legal Conundrums in Division of Co-owned Real Property Following Divorce in Tanzania

Abstract

Ownership of real property among spouses is regulated by the Constitution, land and marriage laws. The Constitution guarantees the right to own property while the Land Act specifies conditions permitting spouses to co-own land. The Law of Marriage Act (LMA) unifies and harmonizes existing multiple regimes of marriage and recognizes all forms marriages. However, the LMA is silent, and its provisions have notable challenges and or irrelevant in the distribution of co-owned real property upon divorce in monogamous and polygamous marriages. Likewise, there is a legal conundrum attached to provisions of the LMA, the Land Act and the Land Registration Act. This Article analyses these challenges and concludes that the LMA has not been aligned with property laws. In this regard, it is irrelevant in the distribution of co-owned real property between spouses at the time of divorce. The Article recommends for the amendment of the LMA and its rules to accommodate division of co-owned real property during divorce.