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Dear Harold,
I want to kick my husband out following the embarrassment he has put me through since he lost his job six months ago. He is seeing another woman and to add insult to injury, he doesn’t look bothered to find another job. He sulks whenever I fail or refuse to pay for pay-TV as he is a soccer fanatic and invites his friends over to watch matches. He also makes a barrage of demeaning comments in front of visitors insinuating that I have been mistreating him since he lost his well-paying job with an international organisation. I am already fed up with his perpetual complaints yet I am the one who pays the rent, buys food and pays fees for our two children in a private school. How can such a man pay for my maintenance if I institute either separation or divorce proceedings on grounds of adultery?
Regina, Nairobi
Dear Regina,
It would be possible to file divorce proceedings over the suspected extra-marital affair but it would not be automatic that he would be ordered to pay for your maintenance. According to the Marriage Act, the court can order for either spouse to pay maintenance to a spouse or former spouse. In your case, you are more likely to be ordered to cater for his upkeep as he has no source of income. The law provides that the court may order a person to pay maintenance to a spouse or former spouse if the person has neglected or deserted his/her spouse. This can be either during the course of any matrimonial proceedings or when seeking orders for a separation or divorce. The maintenance orders shall, however, stop applying upon death of the spouse or when the maintained spouse is able to support himself/herself financially.
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