[MEDIA STATEMENT] Judges Matter calls for Gauteng High Court judge charged with corruption to step down and be suspended immediately

JUDGES MATTER STATEMENT
26 NOVEMBER 2025

Judges Matter calls for the Gauteng High Court judge charged with corruption to step down and be suspended immediately

Judges Matter, the civil society organisation that monitors the judiciary in South Africa, has noted with shock the statement released by the South African Police Service confirming that a Gauteng High Court judge has been arrested alongside three others and will appear before the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on allegations of corruption and money laundering. Judges Matter calls for the judge to immediately step down from her judicial duties, while the Judicial Service Commission must urgently advise the President to place her on suspension, in terms of section 19 of the Judicial Service Commission Act 9 of 1994.

According to the SAPS statement, the allegations against the judge are extremely serious and strike at the heart of a judge’s constitutional duty to adjudicate legal disputes without fear, favour, or prejudice. It is alleged that the judge received gratification in an attempt to influence a civil case that the judge is currently presiding over in the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria. (Read more here)

Section 19(1)(a) of the JSC Act requires the JSC to consider the appointment of a Judicial Conduct Tribunal and to advise the President to suspend a judge when a formal complaint has been filed on affidavit, and a Judicial Conduct Committee has considered the complaint and recommended the appointment of a tribunal. This is the ordinary route for most complaints.

However, section 19(1)(b) of the JSC Act allows for an extraordinary route, where: “whenever it appears to the Commission… that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a judge is guilty of gross misconduct contemplated in section 177 of the Constitution [so-called impeachable gross misconduct], the Commission must request the Chief Justice to appoint a Judicial Conduct Tribunal… and inform the President that it has so requested, and advise the President as to the desirability of suspending… [the judge].”

Judges Matter believes that the extreme seriousness of the allegations against the judge requires the JSC to… [appoint] a Judicial Conduct Tribunal while simultaneously advising the President to suspend the judge immediately.

Judges Matter believes that the extreme seriousness of the allegations against the judge requires the JSC to use the extraordinary route for the first time in its history and recommend the appointment of a Judicial Conduct Tribunal while simultaneously advising the President to suspend the judge immediately.

Alison Tilley, Judges Matter co-ordinator, says:
“We are deeply shocked and very concerned at this turn of events. While the judge is innocent until proven guilty by criminal law standards, the extreme seriousness of the allegations requires the JSC to act urgently to place the judge on suspension even at this early stage. Any delay would cause irreparable damage to the reputation of the judiciary.”

About Judges Matter:
Judges Matter is a civil society project dedicated to monitoring the South African judiciary. A part of the Democratic Governance and Rights Unit at the University of Cape Town’s Law Faculty, Judges Matter conducts applied research, monitoring, and advocacy on the appointment of judges, their discipline for misconduct, and how the judiciary is governed and administered.

Contact:
Alison Tilley
Judges Matter co-ordinator
alison@judgesmatter.co.za

Mbekezeli Benjamin
Judges Matter research and advocacy officer
mbekezeli@judgesmatter.co.za