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…Under section 14 of the Matrimonial Causes Act a marriage may be declared a nullity on inter alia grounds that: “14(1)(b) the marriage had not been consummated owing to the willful refusal of the respondent to consummate…

…It is on this limb that I declare the union a nullity and therefore void. Costs of this petition shall be borne by the respondent. Delivered and dated this 10th day of December 2010 at Malindi. H. A. Omondi JUDGE Mr.…

…Firstly he argued that the petition served had not been sealed or signed by the court and as such was a nullity. In support of this contention he referred the court to the case of R. vs H.…

…Sharma (11949) 2 All ER 207 in which at page 210, Lord Goddad stated at letters A to D that lack of such matters if required b y a statute as a condition precedent renders the document a nullity.…

…Although dealing with service under rule 15, the Court was emphatic that there being no personal service and the advertisement in the gazette being out of time, the proceedings were a nullity.…

…Failure to serve within the stipulated 10 days renders any consequential proceedings a nullity. In our view the subrule is complete and positively states what to be done by who, on who and in which time span.…

…That on expiry of the 28 days before service, the petition ceased to be of any efficacy and thus became a nullity thereafter.…

…The Court was told that after 28 days in fact the petition itself became invalid and therefore a nullity that even serving it by any mode could not breathe life in it. That it could all be a futile exercise.…

…It follows from this that the petition was not served in accordance with the law and is therefore a nullity. Accordingly it must be struck out.…