Child Ownership Under Igbo Customary Law: Resolving the Paternity Conundrum

Abstract

Like other parts of the Nigeria, customary courts in Ebonyi state are established to administer the customary law prevailing in the area of jurisdiction of the court binding upon any of the parties, so far as it is not repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience or incompatible either directly or by necessary implication with any written law in force in the state or inconsistent with public policy. The effect is that once a custom is challenged in a court of law by anyone who is interested or adversely affected by its application, the court will examine such custom diligently in order to discover whether the custom has passed the validity test. Using the doctrinal methodology as its analytical framework, this article examines the validity of Izzi customary law on the paternity of a child in relation the position of the Supreme Court on the subject matter. The article found that the paternity regime under Izzi customary law as part of the larger Igbo land does not pass the test of validity as required by law and the pulsations of civilization for which it should be abandoned as anachronistic and atavistic.