Kuwait Court of Cassation principle number 353

The marriage contract. Its condition. Both spouses must possess capacity to marry in terms of sanity and puberty. The reason for this. Marriage of an insane or mentally deficient person. The contract must be concluded by the guardian of the person according to the order of inheritance. Multiple guardians of the person. The trial court may select the most suitable among them. Absence of the legally recognized guardian. Guardianship vests in the judge as the holder of general guardianship, acting on behalf of the ruler. - A marriage contract concluded by an offer from the wife's guardian and acceptance by the insane or mentally deficient husband himself without his legally recognized guardian. A void marriage that is not susceptible to ratification. The reason: a defect in the husband's capacity that prevents formation of the contract owing to the absence of one of its essential elements. An example concerning the nullity of a marriage contract concluded personally by a husband under interdiction without his guardian, notwithstanding that guardian's signature thereon as a witness.