Legitimacy Law

1. Citation. This Law may be cited as the Legitimacy Law.

2. Interpretation. In this Law- "Christian marriage" means a marriage which is recognised by the law of the place where it is contracted as the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others; "date of legitimation" means the date of the marriage leading to the legitimation or, where the marriage occurred before the commencement of this Law, the commencement of this Law; "disposition" means an assurance of any interest in property by any instrument whether inter vivos or by will; "intestate" includes a person who leaves a will but dies intestate as to some beneficial interest in his real or personal estate; "legitimated person" means a person legitimated by this Law; "marry", "married" and "marriage" refer to Christian marriages only.

3. Legitimation by subsequent marriage of parents. (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, where the parents of an illegitimate person marry or have married one another, whether before or after the commencement of this Law, the marriage shall, if the father of the illegitimate person was or is-at the date of the marriage domiciled in the State render that person, if living, legitimate from the commencement of this Law, or from the date of the marriage, whichever last happens. (2) The legitimation of a person under this Law does not enable him or his spouse, children or remoter issue to take any interest in real or personal property save as is hereinafter in this Law expressly provided.

4. Decrees of legitimacy. (1) A person claiming that he or his parent or any remoter ancestor became or has become a legitimated person may apply by petition to the High Court for a decree declaring that the petitioner is the legitimated child of his parents. (2) The Chief Judge, with the approval of the Governor, may make rules of court for regulating the procedure with regard to applications under subsection (1) and in particular with regard to the evidence which shall be deemed to establish the claim of the petitioner to such decree as aforesaid mentioned. (3) On any such application as in subsection (1) of this section mentioned the court shall make such decree as the court thinks just: Provided that the decree of the court shall not prejudice any person- (a) if it is subsequently proved to have been obtained by fraud or collusion; or (b) unless that person has been cited or made a party to the proceedings or is the heir-at-law, next of kin, or other real or personal representative of, or derives title under or through, a person so cited or made a party.

5. Rights of legitimated persons and others to take interest in property. (1) Subject to the provisions of this Law, a legitimated person, and his spouse, children or more remoter issue shall be entitled to take any interest- (a) in the estate of an intestate dying after the date of legitimation; (b) under any disposition coming into operation after the date of legitimation, in like manner as if the legitimated person had been born legitimate. (2) Where the right to any property, real or personal, depends on the relative seniority of the children of any person, and those children include one or more legitimated persons, the legitimated person or persons shall rank as if he or they had been born when he or they become legitimated by virtue of this Law and if more than one, such legitimated person became legitimated at the same time, they shall rank as between themselves in order of seniority. Provided that nothing in this subsection shall confer preferential rights on legitimated children when succession to property depends on customary law. (3) This section applies only if and so far as a contrary intention is not expressed in the disposition arid shall have effect subject to the terms of such disposition and to the provisions therein contained.

6. Succession on intestacy of legitimated persons and their issue. Where a legitimated person or a child or remoter issue of a legitimated person dies intestate in respect of all or any of his real or personal property, the same persons shall be entitled to take the same interests therein as they would have been entitled to take if the legitimated person had been born legitimate.

7. Application to illegitimate person dying before marriage of parents. Where an illegitimate person dies after the commencement of this Law and before the marriage of his parents leaving any spouse, children or remoter issue living at the date of such marriage, then, if that person would, if living at the time of the marriage of his parents, have become a legitimated person, the provisions of this Law with respect to the taking of interest in property by, or in succession to, the spouse, children and remoter issue of a legitimated person shall apply as if such person as aforesaid had been a legitimated person and the date of the marriage of his parents had been the date of legitimation.

8. Rights and obligations of legitimated persons. A legitimated person shall have the same rights, and shall be under the same obligations in respect of the maintenance and support of himself or of any other person as if he had been born legitimate, and, subject to the provisions of this Law, the provisions of any Act or Law relating to claims for damages, compensation, allowance, benefit, or otherwise by or in respect of a legitimate child shall apply in like manner in the case of a legitimated person.

9. Persons illegitimate by extraneous Law. (1) Where the parents of an illegitimate person marry or have married one another, whether before or after the commencement of this Law, and the father of the illegitimate person was or is, at the time of the marriage, domiciled in a place other than within the State by the law of which the illegitimate person became legitimated by virtue of such subsequent marriage, that person, if living, shall in the State be recognised as having been so legitimated from the commencement of this Law or from the date of the marriage, whichever happened last, notwithstanding that his father was not at the time of the birth of such person domiciled in a place in which legitimation by subsequent marriage was permitted by law. (2) All the provisions of this Law relating to legitimated persons and to the taking of interests in property by or in succession to a legitimated person and the spouse, children and remoter issue of a legitimated person (including those relating to the rate of death duties) shall apply in the case of a person recognised as having been legitimated under this section, or who would, had he survived the marriage of his parents, have been so recognised; and, accordingly, this Law shall have effect as if references therein to a legitimated person included a person so recognised as having been legitimated. (3) For the purposes of this section the expression “place” includes any part of Nigeria other than the State and any part of the commonwealth as well as a foreign country.

10. Rights of illegitimate child and mother to succeed on intestacy of the other. (1) Save as provided in subsection (3), where, after the commencement of this Law, the mother of an illegitimate child, such child not being a legitimated person, dies intestate in respects all or any of her real or personal property, and does not leave any legitimate issue her surviving, the illegitimate child, or, if he is dead, his issue shall be entitled to take any interest therein to which he or such issue would have been entitled if he had been born legitimate. (2) Save as provided in subsection (3), where, after the commencement of this Law, an illegitimate child, not being a legitimated person, dies intestate in respect of all or any of his real or personal property, his mother if surviving shall be entitled to take any interest therein to which she would have been entitled if the child had been born legitimate and she had been the only surviving parent. (3) Saving as to customary law. - Nothing in this section shall affect inheritance or succession under customary law when the mother of the illegitimate child is a native.

11. Saving. Nothing in this Law shall affect the operation or construction of any disposition coming into operation before the commencement of this Law, or affect any rights under the intestacy of a person dying before the commencement of this Law.