Full reasoning of the Kumasi High Court in the Akosua Serwaa, Odo Broni widowhood case
In a 49-page judgment delivered on November 25, 2025, the court, presided over by Her Ladyship Justice Dorinda Smith Arthur, found that Akosua Serwaa had failed to meet the legal burden of proof required to establish the validity of the claimed civil marriage.
The Plaintiff, Akosua Serwaah Fosuh, filed a suit seeking a declaration that she is the sole surviving spouse of the late musician Charles Kwadwo Fosuh (Daddy Lumba) and thus ought to be declared as the sole widow for the impending funeral of the musician.
She relied on:
An alleged 2004 German civil marriage, and
A 1991 Ghanaian customary marriage,
The assertion that no valid dissolution ever occurred.
The defendants counterclaimed that:
The Plaintiff abandoned the deceased for over a decade.
Her customary marriage was dissolved by presentation and acceptance of “divorce drinks”;
She never performed in-law rites at the deceased’s mother’s funeral—an essential cultural KPI for spouse recognition;
Priscilla Ofori (D2) was customarily married to the deceased in 2010, lived with him continuously for 15+ years, bore six children, and functioned as the publicly acknowledged wife.
A third defendant, Transitions Funeral Home, was only peripherally involved—its operational role was centered on access to the deceased’s remains.
ANALYSIS
The Court, applying the preponderance-of-probabilities standard, reiterated that:
Foreign law is a question of fact, requiring expert proof.
Foreign documents require authentication under ss. 136 & 161 of the Evidence Act (NRCD 323).
Counterclaims operate as independent suits, requiring the counterclaimant (D2) to meet her own burden.
The Plaintiff’s case suffered a fatal systems failure in evidence governance:
No expert evidence on German law as required.
The purported German marriage certificate (Exhibits B, B1, C) failed authentication, exhibited inconsistencies in signatures and dates, and was inadmissible.
No valid original certificate, no certification from Ghana's consulate, and no corroborating civil-marriage documentation.
As a result, the court excluded all foreign-marriage evidence as having zero probative value. This meant the Plaintiff could not legally establish the existence of the German civil marriage.
The court further established that intention to divorce is not divorce; dissolution must comply with the governing personal law, and widowhood rites are culturally governed: only legally recognized wives may perform them.
Further, the court noted that the domicile of origin revives when a foreign domicile is abandoned; thus, the deceased died a Ghanaian domiciliary, meaning Ghanaian personal law prevailed in determining marital status and widowhood rights.
Because the German marriage was not proven, the court evaluated only the customary marriages, which both sides conceded existed.
Therefore, since customary marriage is polygamous, both marriages are legally valid unless dissolved.
The Court did not accept the Defendants’ argument that the Plaintiff’s marriage was dissolved, citing insufficient proof of valid customary dissolution.
Again the court indicated that unproven foreign marriages, cannot be given legal effect.
There was an absence of expert testimony and authentication which nullified the Plaintiff’s reliance on the alleged German civil marriage.
In the absence of the above, it was established that customary marriages—being potentially polygamous—can concurrently coexist. Thus, both Akosua Serwaa and Odo Broni satisfied the evidentiary threshold for recognition as customary spouses.
The Court rejected all four reliefs sought by the Plaintiff, including her request to be recognized as the sole widow.
Counterclaim of 2nd Defendant Partly Granted
The Court held:
Plaintiff was customarily married to the deceased in 1991.
D2 was customarily married to the deceased in 2010.
Both women are surviving spouses of the deceased.
Key holdings
The Plaintiff was customarily married to the deceased Charles Kwadwo Fosuh aka Daddy Lumba in 1991 in Ghana.
The 2nd Defendant was customarily married to the deceased Charles Kwadwo Fosuh aka Daddy Lumba in 2010 in Ghana.
The Plaintiff and the 2nd Defendant(Odo Broni) are the surviving spouses of the deceased Charles Kwadwo Fosuh aka Daddy Lumb
Consequential Orders
The family must recognize both women as surviving spouses entitled to perform widowhood rites.
There is no barrier to the funeral home cooperating with the family to release the body for burial rites.
