The Impact of the General Rule of Intestate Succession on Igbo Custom of Inheritance: A Review of Ukeje v Ukeje

Abstract

In succession matters, the general rule is that where a man dies intestate, the applicable law is the
personal law of the deceased regardless of the location of the property in question. Applying this rule in
Ukeje v Ukeje, the supreme Court voided the Igbo custom which denies women the right to inherit
immovable property as being repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience. The supreme
Court also held such custom to be contrary to Section 42 and 43 of the 1999 Constitution. The purview of
this paper is that the custom of inheritance as practiced by Igbo people was based on very equitable
considerations which still hold true in Igboland today. Problem arises when the rules are applied to
personal property acquired by the deceased in urban areas especially outside Igboland. This work
attempts to detangle the issues which seem to have bred confusion with regard to the application of the
custom. The work holds that, the practice of the Igbo custom of inheritance is unsuitable for application
outside Igboland as it fails to serve the initial purpose of the custom. This paper contends that it is unfair
and unjust to judge the custom of a people viz a viz the Igbos with a standard and an environment that is
foreign to the people.