JSC October Interviews: Key appointments, challenges, and a new era of leadership

A political buzz surrounded the start of the JSC October interviews as Dr Hlophe’s resignation from the JSC was announced through the media on that Monday afternoon. The first day of interviews, which focused on the interviewing and appointing of three judges for the Supreme Court of Appeal, was unaffected. This set off the seven days of interviews where 48 interviews were held for 26 vacancies, resulting in 22 appointments.

The issue concerning Dr John Hlophe’s eligibility to participate in the October interviews was settled in court proceedings, where his involvement was barred by an interim interdict. Several other attempts were made by the Mkhonto weSizwe (MK) party to disrupt the interviews. After the JSC resolved to decline the party’s request for a postponement, MK pursued their case in court, seeking an interdict to stop the interviews.

MK was ultimately unsuccessful in their bid, and the court held that the JSC had acted rationally in its previous decision not to postpone its October sitting. However, this was not the MK’s last attempt at disrupting the interviews.

During the afternoon of the first day, the MK party announced Dr John Hlophe’s resignation. The question then arose: was the JSC properly constituted? Although formal communication from the Speaker of Parliament was only received the next day,  Commissioner Sesi Baloyi SC confirmed in a media briefing that the JSC was properly constituted. Commissioner Notyesi reiterated these sentiments the following day, emphasising that the JSC’s process would not be disrupted by frivolous litigation.

The new Chief Justice

Although Chief Justice Mandisa Maya is no stranger to chairing the JSC, this was her first time chairing the interviews in her own right since her appointment as Chief Justice on the 1^st of September. (Read more) As before, Chief Justice Maya commanded the respect and cooperation of all commissioners, which led to efficient and effective interviews. While she did not begin the interviews by explicitly stating that the criteria will be applied, as her predecessor did, she demonstrated their application in practice. Chief Justice Maya intervened as necessary to halt irrelevant questioning, limit commissioners to three questions for time management, and guide candidates away from speculative answers. In short, Chief Justice Maya delivered a masterclass in effective JSC chairing.

In short, Chief Justice Maya delivered a masterclass in effective JSC chairing.”

Performance of new members

This round of interviews was the first for seven of the Parliamentary representatives and also a debut for Minister Thembi Simelane. With the guidance of the 14 more experienced JSC members and the Chief Justice at the helm, all new members engaged thoughtfully, asking important questions that aligned with the JSC criteria throughout the seven days of interviews.

Learn more about who sits on the JSC here.

SCA appointments: Will they successfully fill the gap?

Bringing a combined 47 years of judicial experience, the JSC filled the Supreme Court of Appeal’s three vacancies by appointing Judge Elizabeth Baartman, Judge Phillip Coppin, and Judge Piet Koen, each from different High Court divisions. It is hoped they will help bridge the experience gap left by recent SCA retirements. For Judge Baartman and Judge Koen, this was their fourth and now final attempt at securing a seat in the Appeal Court.

See the full list of candidates here

Judicial leadership positions

This round of interviews saw five leadership positions being vied for and all of them being filled. The first to be filled was the Deputy Judge President vacancy at the Land Court. All three judges of the Land Court put themselves forward, but Judge Susannah Cowen was ultimately successful. In her interview, she displayed a firm grasp of the problems facing the court and had specific plans on how she would go about tackling each one. Judge Cowen’s passion for the Land Court was evident, and she will now join recently appointed Judge President Zeenat Carelse in leading the Land Court.

With 13 years of experience in the court, Judge Zaba Nkosi was appointed as the Deputy Judge President of the KwaZulu-Natal High Court Division. Judge Nkosi assured the commission that his age (66) would not hinder his effectiveness, stating, “There is a lot that one can achieve in four years’ time”. Judge Ratshibvumo, fifteen years younger, was appointed Deputy Judge President of the Mpumalanga High Court Division. His energetic interview outlined his vision for the High Courts of Mpumalanga, and similarly to most other candidates interviewed for leadership positions, set out the main challenges faced by the courts including a lack of support staff, lack of judges, and infrastructural issues faced by the court. Starting in this position at such a young age gives Judge Ratshibvumo many years to make his vision for the court a reality.

Deputy Judge President Edwin Molahlehi was elevated to Judge President of the Labour and Labour Appeals Court. Having acted as Judge President for several months, Judge Molahlehi brings 17 years of knowledge and experience to this position. With his retirement approaching in 2026, it is important that the skills and knowledge held by him are suitably shared with the upcoming leaders of the Labour Court.

The most contentious leadership position was Judge President of the Western Cape High Court Division, a role not interviewed for in 23 years, with seven candidates coming before the JSC to vie for the post. These included the current Acting Judge President and Deputy President Patricia Goliath, Acting Deputy Judge President Andrè le Grange and four high court judges from the Western and Eastern Cape Divisions, but ultimately it was SCA Justice Mabindla-Boqwana that was successful. Hailing from the Western Cape High Court, she put the commissioners’ minds at ease that she was still in touch with the problems of the court and was committed to staying at the court before what seems to be expected as her natural ascension to the Constitutional Court in the future. Her appointment not only promises stability for the Western Cape High Court Division but also marks her as the sixth woman to join the Heads of Court Forum, the third addition this year. This is a great win for the gender composition of judicial leadership of superior courts.

High Court appointments

Four of the six vacancies in the KwaZulu-Natal Division of the High Court were filled by Adv M Chithi, Adv G Harrison, Adv Jikela SC and Adv Singh. All six vacancies in the Gauteng Division of the High Court were filled by Prof W du Plessis, Adv E Labuschagne SC, Adv S Mahomed, Mr M Makamu, Judge G Moshoana and Adv R Mkhabela SC.

It is clear that the JSC took the gender transformation of the judiciary seriously when the appointments in the Western Cape and Limpopo Divisions of the High Court were considered. Three of the four vacancies in the Western Cape were filled by Adv M Holderness, Ms M Pangarker and Ms N Ralarala, while in Limpopo Ms J Ngobeni was the first woman appointed to the Thohoyandou High Court.

Unfilled vacancies persist

Once again vacancies have been left unfilled after the JSC interviews. Two seats in KwaZulu-Natal, one in the Western Cape and the vacancy in the Eastern Cape were all left vacant after the interviews. Unlike in previous years, however, it was clear from the commissioner’s questions, aligned with the JSC criteria, that this issue was due to a lack of strong candidates coming forward.

Chief Justice Maya acknowledged this problem in Adv E Labuschagne SC’s interview where she made a plea to senior practitioners: “I have to make this comment that it is rare for our top lawyers, which you are, that’s a fact, to make themselves available for the bench. We know what the challenges are. We always appreciate it when someone like you does make themselves available and we hope this will encourage, we hope they are listening out there, it will encourage our top lawyers especially the black ones to make themselves available for the bench. We know the pay is poor, but we are drowning. We need our good people.”

It is the JSC’s task to continue the track it is currently on, where it has rigorous but fair and respectful interviews of candidates and makes rational appointment decisions to attract good candidates.