THE High Court has granted a Harare woman her share of US$32 500 after her estranged husband sold their matrimonial house and refused to share the proceeds.
The woman, Letween Kadiya, claimed US$52 500 but High Court judge Justice Amy Tsanga granted her US$32 500.
According to court documents, Kudakwashe Naison met Kadiya in 2013 and they started cohabiting the following year.
Kadiya gave birth in May 2015 to their first child and she stopped going to work.
Naison then suggested that they go into joint venture selling phones and Kadiya gave him US$500 as capital.
They were also given a loan in the form of cellphones worth US$35 000 by a Chinese woman called Anita, who was Naison’s contact in China.
Naison occasionally went to China and when he was away, Kadiya ran the shop.
Her testimony was that the loan from Anita was paid within a month, adding that their average sales were as high as US$7 000 per day and profit was between US$3 000 and US$3 500.
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They then bought a stand in Haydon Park and registered it in their names in July 2019.
They constructed a 16-roomed house to roof level and sold it so that they could buy a stand with title deeds.
It was sold for US$65 000 in 2022.
Kadiya said her estranged husband did not release her share of the proceeds until they separated in March 2023.
She then filed an application at the High Court claiming US$52 500 from the proceeds of the sale of the stand.
She also testified that at the time of separation in 2023, they had cellphones in stock worth US$40 000 thus she claimed US$20 000 as her share of that stock.
Kadiya told the court that she was selling weaves and used proceeds from her business to assist Naison to start the cellphone business.
Naison, in his evidence, denied having been in a business partnership with her.
He also denied that she gave him US$500 as capital.
He admitted that they bought a stand, which they registered in their names.
His explanation was that they sold the stand because the cellphone business was down.
As for the proceeds from the sale, his testimony was that he had, in fact, used the money to service the loan obtained from Anita.
However, Justice Tsanga said Kadiyo deserved her fair share.
“By registering the property in both names, she obtained a half share. Also, since there was no business partnership in the strict sense of that word relating to his cellphone business, then the loan to Anita had nothing to do with the plaintiff,” the judge ruled.
“He could not have used her half share of the proceeds from the sale of the property in which he owned half to cover his own business loan. He owes her US$32 500.
“In the result, it is ordered that the defendant (Naison) shall pay the plaintiff (Kadiya) the sum of US$32 500 being her half share of the proceeds from the sale of the jointly-owned property being Stand 3239 State Land, Haydon Farm, measuring 877 square metres.”
