The Constitutional Court, as the provider and guardian of the Constitution, is constantly concerned about how sensitive socio-economic and political legal issues can be recognized and implemented in the context of limited public resources to respect the rights of every citizen. Some examples are illustrated in the following cases. At the end of the African continent is an Eldorado in the form of South Africa. Located at the southern tip of the continent, it`s no wonder that South Africa is often considered another African country. In fact, South Africa is outside of Africa (if you`ll pardon the pun) and is considered the Golden Dreamland, not only because of its supposed natural gold deposits, but also because of its history and liberation struggles, first led by Gandhi and later by Nelson Mandela. As a highly modernized and developed state, with a high quality of life, a rule of law based on the supremacy of a constitution and a bill of rights, natural beauty, endless coastline and Louis Vuitton or Christan Lacroix. It`s easy to believe why you might leave Africa! [2] “Researching South African Law” by Amanda Barratt and Pamela Snyman, March 2005. www.nyulawglobal.org/globalex/south_africa.htm Given that indigenous inhabitants and successive Dutch and British colonial governments failed to grasp the laws of pre-colonial southern Africa, there is a lack of information about laws prior to the colonization of South Africa. [ref. needed] However, the current South African legal system has recognised the importance of these courts and they have been integrated into the overall legal system, where they can function as district/municipal courts. [ref. The South African judicial system is organized according to a clear hierarchy by Chapter 8 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, in particular Article 166, and consists (from the lowest to the highest judicial authority): The President is the Head of State and governs with a cabinet of Ministers and Deputy Ministers who head the various departments of the national government.
Second, a single High Court with multiple divisions across the country, both regional (with jurisdiction over the entire province) and smaller local divisions (with geographically smaller jurisdiction, usually over densely populated areas), introduced by the Superior Courts Act 2013. This can be clearly seen in Gauteng, which has both the High Court of South Africa Gauteng Division, Pretoria, which sits in Pretoria, and the High Court of South Africa Gauteng Local Division, Johannesburg, which sits in Johannesburg. [6] All the names of the High Court have been clarified by the Chief Justice and appear on page 14 of the South African Official Gazette No. 37390 of 28 February 2014. [6] In addition, there are African indigenous courts that deal exclusively with indigenous law. A draft law on traditional courts aimed at establishing a traditional court at or at the same level as the courts of first instance has been prepared but is awaiting presentation, reading and debate by Parliament. [11] Please contact us at law-academicresearch@unimelb.edu.au if you have any corrections, suggestions or comments about the guide. ___ The arbitration proceedings shall be referred to the independent arbitration institution, the Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration Commission. In 2002, the Court addressed the right to health care and access to HIV/AIDS treatment as part of the “Ministers of Health Against Treatment” Action Campaign and specifically ordered that this right extend to the provision of nevirapine to HIV-infected mothers and their newborns in public health facilities under certain circumstances and conditions.
The next level is that of the high courts of each province, which sit as civil and criminal courts. The jurisdiction of the High Courts is based on substantive and personal jurisdiction in civil matters and is presided over by a single judge. In criminal matters, it is competent to deal with serious offences and minimum criminal prosecutions, which are presided over by a single judge with 2 assessors. Some high courts function as provincial divisional high courts, in which case they sit as review and appellate courts in civil and criminal cases of the courts of first instance or the High Court under its jurisdiction. As a general rule, appeals are presided over by three judges. There are currently 14 provincial divisions of the Supreme Court. There are other higher courts, such as the Land Claims Court and the Labour Court of Appeal, both of which were created under separate legislation. Important decisions or judgments of the High Courts are reported in Law Reports (edited by Juta and Lexis Nexis Butterworths). These include the South African Law Reports (SALR), which include the main judgments of all higher courts and some judgments from Zimbabwe and Namibia, Butterworth`s Constitutional Law Reports, Butterworth`s Labour Law Reports and the All South African Law Reports.
In addition, the legislation has also established a number of specialized courts to deal with areas of particular interest to the public and to avoid a backlog in the main infrastructure of legal administration. These courts coexist with the hierarchy of courts; Their decisions are therefore subject to the same appeal and review procedure by the ordinary courts, from a certain level, depending on the specialised court concerned. Within these specialized tribunals, there are, to name but a few, the Competition Appeal Court, the Electoral Court, the Land Claims Court and the Labour and Labour Appeal Court. [10] [3] www.constitutionalcourt.org.za/site/thecourt/history.htm#cases South Africa is a unitary state with nine provinces; Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North Cape, North West and Western Cape. Each province is governed by a premier and an executive council. The courts of first instance are Magistrate Courts, which are divided into District (similar to the local judge) and Regional (similar to the District Court). Jurisdiction is determined by the Courts of First Instance Act 1944, as recently amended, for civil disputes (usually claims below ZAR 300,000), certain criminal cases and certain family disputes. The courts of first instance are located in all 9 provinces. Lawyers have a limited right to appear in court and are generally only allowed to appear before the Magistrates Court, although there are rules that allow for an extended right to appear in higher courts. Lawyers are usually the general managers of cases and are the lawyers who first consult clients with their problems.
Lawyers provide general legal advice. [5] Paragraph 392 of the judgment. 41.208.61.234/uhtbin/cgisirsi/20120919161228/SIRSI/0/520/J-CCT3-94 First, a number of Magistrates` Courts (both smaller regional districts and larger districts). [5] The socio-economic rights enshrined in the Bill of Rights forced the Court to make difficult decisions and to reflect on how to balance fundamental rights with the limited resources of the state. In Government of the RSA v. Grootboom in 2000, the Court dealt with the right to housing provided for in the Bill of Rights. Ignored by the apartheid government, the acute housing shortage was a problem that the new government had to eliminate. The Court ordered the new Government, within available resources, to develop and implement a comprehensive programme for the progressive realization of the right of access to adequate housing. [1] For a discussion of this process, see www.socialjusticejournal.org/SJEdits/43-2Edit.html One of the first cases considered by the newly appointed court was the death penalty.
This penalty was removed from the Criminal Procedure Act of 1977 by the Court`s decision in The State v Makwanyane, which stated that “everyone, including the most heinous human being, has the right to life and the death penalty is therefore unconstitutional” [5]. The Court went even further in Mohamed v. President of the RSA in 2001, confirming that it would be unconstitutional to extradite an accused to a country that imposes the death penalty. Third, the Supreme Court of Appeal (CSA), a pure court of appeal (court of second instance). Whereas previously, both the SCA and the Constitutional Court held a common higher jurisdiction/position; The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution of South Africa changed the hierarchy so that the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg is the Supreme Court, including the SCA and the Lower High Court to the SCA. [7] This research guide is produced and maintained by the MLS Academic Research Service, Melbourne Law School. South Africa has a population of 56.4 million (2018 figures). It has 11 official languages: Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu. Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans and English are the most widely spoken mother tongues. Lawyers (also known as counsel), on the other hand, have full right to appear before all courts and are litigation specialists. Senior counsel (usually those who have been practicing for 10 years) can apply for “silk” and are called “senior counsel” (SC).
Generally, lawyers are specialists in certain fields and can only act on behalf of a client if they have received instruction from a lawyer.