How the Concourt customary marriage ruling could affect DJ Black Coffee and Enhle Mbali

By Marcus Moloko

The Constitutional Court has delivered a major judgment on how customary marriages and later civil marriages interact, and, importantly, on whether couples can rely on an ante nuptial contract (ANC) signed after a customary marriage to change what happens to the property and money of that marriage.

The ruling, handed down on Wednesday in VVC v JRM and Others, is already being read alongside other high-profile disputes where a customary marriage was followed by a civil marriage and an ANC.

The judgment confirms a simple rule. If a couple already has a valid customary marriage, a later civil marriage doesn’t cancel it. And if they want to change the money and property rules that apply to their marriage, they usually can’t just sign private papers, they must follow the legal process, which can include getting a court to approve the change.

That matters because the DJ Black