In today’s Friday read, we will be discussing the law on breach of promise to marry.
Do you know that you can bring an action against a person who fails to honour his or her promise to marry you? This is called the action of breach of promise to marry.
The action of breach of promise to marry is rarely talked of or used in our Ghanaian setting. One of the possible reasons is that, most Ghanaians are not aware of it or some find it shameful and costly to commence it. That notwithstanding, the law provides a remedy for an aggrieved party.
In order to constitute a breach, there must be proof that there was a promise given by one party to marry another. It is not every promise given that would constitute the breach. The promise must be seriously given by one party and received as such by the other party. The promise can be express or implied.
In order to ascertain whether the promise is implied, the court will infer from the conduct of both parties. Conduct such as living under the same roof as husband and wife, representing to the community that you are married couples and the buying of a ring and Bible with the intention to marry amongst many others.
Since the courts in Ghana cannot compel a person to marry another, once it is established that there is a breach, the aggrieved party is entitled to damages (compensation).