What does South Africa’s Judiciary look like?
Judges Matter was curious about what South Africa’s judiciary looks like, and so we put together an infographic showing the racial and gender make-up of the judiciary.
We last revised the infographic in 2016. At the time, the total number of seats within the judiciary was 255. As of September 2020, it was 268!
In 2016 we had 13 High Courts listed, in September 2020 we had 16, including the Limpopo Division, Polokwane (opened 2016), and Mpumalanga Division, Nelspruit and Mpumalanga Local Division, Middleburg (opened May 2019).
May 2019 marked the first time in South African history that every province had its own permanent provincial seat of the High Court. The number of positions available and seats filled therefore adjusted accordingly.
In 2016, vacancies stood at 29, 11,38%. September 2020, 39 vacancies equate to 14,6%.
We last revised the infographic in 2016. At the time, the total number of seats within the judiciary was 255. As of September 2020, it was 268!
So, with all this enlargement how is the judiciary bearing up in the representative demographics department? The answer: not too bad!
The gender composition of South Africa’s Judiciary
The gender composition of the judiciary is still misaligned with the gender composition of South African society, which is female dominated. In 2016 the male/female bias was 145 male judges (64%) to 82 female judges (36%)
September 2020 sees 134 male judges (58,5%) and 95 female judges (41,5%).
The racial composition of the judiciary
In 2016, the racial composition of the judiciary could be broken down as follows:
- 101 judges identified African (44%),
- 24 Indian (11%),
- 24 Coloured (11%)
- and 78 White (34%).
In September 2020, the demographics have changed slightly to be:
- 104 African judges (45,5%),
- 24 Indian (10,5%),
- 28 Coloured (12,2%)
- and 73 White (31,9%).
Viewed in terms of gender vs race in September 2020:
- African: Male 59 (25,7% ), Female 45 (19,65%)
- Indian: Male 14 (6,1%), Female 10 (4,36%)
- Coloured: Male 16 (6,98%), Female 12 (5,24%)
- White: Male 45 (19,65%), Female 28 (12,2%)
Representivity at leadership level
The real disparity lies in the upper echelons of the judiciary, especially at the leadership level. This includes the Chief Justice, the Deputy Chief Justice, the President and Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Appeal, the Judges President and their deputies.
Of the 19 top positions within the judiciary, 12 of these positions are held by African males (63,15%), two by African females (10,52%), three by Coloured males (15,79%), one Coloured female and one white male (5,26% respectively). On this list, we can add the specialised courts such as the Electoral Court, the Land Claims Court, the Competition Appeal Court and the Labour Court but the gender demographics do not look much better: An African male, an Indian female, a White male, and a Coloured male head up each of those courts respectively.
Section 174(2) of the Constitution requires that the judiciary broadly reflect the racial and gender composition of South Africa, and the Judicial Service Commission must consider this when appointing judges. All in all, the JSC’s commitment to this seems apparent. True transformation, however, goes beyond representation and must also include a deeper commitment to the values of the Constitution – and a few changes to the old guard.
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