Six candidates were interviewed for the Constitutional Court on Wednesday 3 April 2019 for two vacancies at the highest court. Of these candidates, five were recommended to the President for appointment. In line with section 174(4) of the Constitution the President will now appoint two Constitutional Court judges from the list of five names sent […]
Over the last few years, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has vastly improved its approach to gender parity among judicial candidates. It has begun to ask important questions about the bench as a working environment for women, and to gauge ideas from both male and female candidates on removing barriers in the profession that stop […]
Originally the Constitutional Court was established as the final court on all constitutional matters. However, following the 17th amendment Act of 2012 it is now South Africa’s highest court on all matters. The Constitutional Court consists of the Chief Justice, the Deputy Chief Justice and nine other judges. Thus, the Court’s bench is supposed to […]
Progressive constitutional democracies from around the world are anchored on certain fundamental values and principles which include separation of powers and accountability. South Africa is regarded in certain circles as a model of constitutional democracy, especially for many African States. This view is not without a valid basis. Notwithstanding a myriad of challenges confronting it, […]
The Judge President of the Western Cape asked a number of questions in the October 2017 hearings of the JSC. These questions went to what are called the skewed briefing patterns that exist, generally referring to how members of the advocates’ profession obtain work from attorneys. He asked Mr Papier: The issue Mr Papier, of […]
Last week Paul Hoffman SC, the Director and Head of Projects at The Institute for Accountability in Southern Africa (IFAISA), wrote an opinion piece for Daily Maverick titled; The Justice John Hlophe Inquiry Papers: Going nowhere fast. This piece was originally written by Hoffman in 2008 but in light of the ongoing allegations surrounding Judge […]
Whenever there are vacancies in the judiciary, the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) advertises those vacancies, receives nominations, shortlists candidates, and public interviews are conducted to select candidates who are then recommended for appointment by the President. In order to qualify for appointment as a judge, one must be appropriately qualified and must be considered to […]
The Constitutional Court currently has two vacancies open. These vacancies have not been advertised in the call for nominations for the JSC’s October 2018 interviews. This has surprised many people, as the vacancies have stood open since June 2016 and January 2018 respectively – so it is not as if these have only suddenly become […]
Section 174 (2) of the Constitution of South Africa, which may be referred to as the “transformation clause” stipulates that the need for the judiciary to “reflect broadly the racial and gender composition of South Africa must be considered” when judges are appointed. The contentious nature of the provision was captured in a question that […]
Article 12(2) of the Code of Judicial Conduct for South African Judges states that; “A judge must, upon permanent appointment, immediately sever all professional links and recover speedily all fees and other amounts outstanding and organise his or her personal business affairs to minimise the potential for conflicts of interest.” But what does ‘upon permanent […]
