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Magistrate Sharon Mthimunye

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Ms S Mthimunye_7384

Capacity: Magistrate
First appointed as a magistrate: November 2015 (Wynberg District Court)
Gender: Female
Ethnicity: Black
Date of Birth: July 1973
Qualifications: LLB (2006)(University of the Western Cape)

Key judgments:

 

Candidate Bio | Updated March 2026:

Magistrate Sharon Mthimunye is a permanent magistrate in the Wynberg District Court.

Over the course of nearly 20 years, her legal career has evolved from private practice to judicial service as a magistrate and acting judge. Between April 2024 and August 2025, Mthimunye served 38 weeks as an Acting Judge within the Western Cape Division, where she presided over a range of matters, including full bench criminal and civil appeals, immigration matters, and insolvency proceedings.

After Magistrate Mthimunye’s admission as an attorney in 2008, she founded Sharon Williams Attorneys, where she practised until 2011, focusing on family, criminal, and delictual matters. Her transition to the bench began in 2011 as an Acting District Court Magistrate in Wynberg, an appointment that became permanent in 2015. She further advanced her judicial experience through acting stints as a Regional Court Magistrate in Stellenbosch (2022-2023) and as an Acting Judge at the Western Cape High Court since 2024.

During her acting tenure at the High Court, Mthimunye has delivered several reported judgments across diverse legal fields. In State v Rajabu, she presided over a special review involving a criminal trial where the accused was represented by a practitioner who had been struck off the roll of advocates. In setting aside the proceedings, Mthimunye explained that representation by an unauthorised practitioner amounts to a “gross irregularity” that violates the accused’s right to a fair trial.

In the realm of company law, Mthimunye ruled that payments made after a company’s winding-up commenced were void, ordering the repayment of over R1 million to liquidators in Cooper N.O. v VAB Sales and Distribution. The judgment clarified that courts have limited discretion to approve such payments and reinforced the Companies Act’s purpose of preventing improper asset disposal and safeguarding creditors.

In Kabula v Standing Committee for Refugee Affairs, Mthimunye addressed an administrative law issue involving the cessation of refugee status, overturning the Committee’s decision to revoke a Congolese medical doctor’s refugee status. She found the decision “illogical” and “unconstitutional,” upholding the principle of non-refoulement and South Africa’s international obligation to protect refugees facing genuine risk in their home countries.

Beyond her jurisprudence, Mthimunye identifies her key contributions to the law as mentorship and the advancement of gender equity. Since 2015, she has mentored female law students and magistrates as part of her role within the South African Chapter of the International Association of Women Judges (SAC-IAWJ), where she also served as Provincial Coordinator. She is also an active member of the Black Lawyers Association (BLA) and the Judicial Officers Association of South Africa (JOASA).

Outside the courtroom, Mthimunye is an active member of the Uniting Presbyterian Church of South Africa (UPCSA). She is on the Gender Desk at UPSCA, where she educates congregants on their rights regarding domestic violence, foster care grants, elder law and guides applying for protection orders.

Mthimunye’s career encompasses work in private practice, the magistracy, and as an acting judge in the High Court, alongside contributions to mentorship, gender equity, and community engagement.

April 2026 JSC Interviews

After deliberations, the Judicial Service Commission decided not to recommend Ms Sharon Mthimunye for appointment to the Western Cape High Court.