Ahkter v Khan

Ahkter v Khan
CourtCourt of Appeal
Full case name Attorney General v Ahkter
Decided14 February 2020
Citation[2020] EWCA Civ 122; [2020] 2 WLR 1183; [2020] 2 FLR 139
Case opinions
An Islamic ceremony of marriage which was not performed in accordance with the formalities required by the Marriage Act 1949 for the creation of a valid marriage under English law was a "non-qualifying ceremony" which did not create even a void marriage.
Keywords
  • children's welfare
  • decrees of nullity
  • marriage ceremony
  • non-marriage
  • presumptions
  • religious marriages
  • void marriages

Ahkter v Khan [2020] EWCA 122, also known as Attorney General v Ahkter, is an English family law Court of Appeal case concerning the validity of an Islamic ceremony of marriage. A woman who recently divorced her husband petitioned the court to determine whether the marriage, resulting from a Nikah, was void marriage or a non-marriage. The Family Court had held the marriage was void, granting her financial remedies. The Court of Appeal subsequently reversed the decision and denied financial remedies. The case received much scholarly and media attention on the requirements for marriage and the protection of vulnerable spouses.[1][2]

  1. ^ "Islamic faith marriages not valid in English law, appeal court rules". The Guardian. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  2. ^ SBS (14 February 2020). "PRESS RELEASE: Akhter v Khan". Southall Black Sisters. Retrieved 5 March 2021.