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Constitutional CourtThe Constitutional Court was established in 1996 by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The court is situated at Constitutional Hill Precinct in Braamfontein, Johannesburg. There are 11 judges of the Constitutional Court, namely a Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice and 9 Judges. A matter must be heard by at least 8 judges. The Constitutional Court is the apex court in South Africa. Its decisions cannot be changed by any other court. The court decides constitutional and general matters. A constitutional matter includes any issue involving the interpretation, protection or enforcement of the Constitution. General matters are heard if the Constitutional Court grants leave to appeal. A general matter is one that is of general and public importance. The Constitutional Court makes the final decision whether a matter is within its jurisdiction. Only the Constitutional Court hears – A matter may be brought directly to the Constitutional Court or appealed directly to the Constitutional Court from any other court. Leave of the Constitutional Court is required to do so. Website: www.constitutionalcourt.org.za Supreme Court of AppealThe Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) is based in Bloemfontein in the Free State. It was established in 1910 as the Appellate Division. It is designated as the Supreme Court of Appeal by the Constitution. The court consists of a President, a Deputy President and a number of judges of appeal. Ordinarily, proceedings are presided over by three or five judges, depending on the nature of the appeal. An appeal in a criminal or civil matter may be heard before a court consisting of three judges. A court consisting of a larger number of judges hear a matter of importance. The SCA decides appeals except in labour and competition matters. Appeals to the SCA emanate from the High Court of South Africa or a court of a similar status to the High Court. Except for the Constitutional Court, no other court can change a decision of the SCA. The SCA may change its own decision. The final decision of the SCA is the one supported by most of the judges listening to the case. If a judgement is not agreed to by a majority of the judges, the matter is adjourned and recommenced afresh before a new court. The President of the SCA determines the constitution of the new court. Website: www.supremecourtofappeal.org.za High CourtsThe High Court of South Africa consists of the following Divisions: Each Division of the High Court consists of a Judge President, one or more Deputy Judges President and judges. The number of judges in each Division are determined in accordance with prescribed criteria and approved by the President. Each Division has an area of jurisdiction which comprises of any part of one or more provinces. Each Division has a main seat and one or more local seats. A local seat has its own (exclusive) area of jurisdiction. Appeals arising from a decision of a single judge or of a Magistrate’s Court within the local seat, may, by direction of the Judge President be heard at the main seat of the Division. The main seat has concurrent (the same) appeal jurisdiction over a local seat. Judges are assigned within the Division by the Judge President. The High Court may sit elsewhere than the main or local seat to hear a matter, as determined by the Judge President after consulting the Minister. The reasons for doing so are expediency or the interests of justice. A civil matter heard by a court of first instance, meaning that the matter is not an appeal matter, is presided over by a single judge. Any matter may be heard by a court consisting of not more than three judges. A single judge hearing a civil matter may discontinue the hearing and refer it for hearing to the full court of that Division. This is done inconsultation with the Judge President or, in the absence of both the Judge President and the Deputy Judge President, the senior available judge. The law relating to criminal procedure determines the number of judges hearing a criminal case as a court of first instance. Two judges hear any civil or criminal appeal. If the judges hearing the appeal do not agree, then at any time before a judgment is handed down, a third judge will be added to hear the appeal. The decision of the majority of the judges of a full court of a Division is the decision of the court. Where the majority of the judges disagree, the hearing is adjourned and commenced from the start (de novo) before a court consisting of three other judges. The High Court decides constitutional matters, with two exceptions. The Constitutional Court may agree to hear the matter directly or an Act of Parliament may assign another court of a status similar to the High Court to hear the constitutional matter. The High Court decides other matters that have not been assigned to another court by an Act of Parliament. The jurisdiction of the High Court to hear any matter includes - Local and Main Seats of the Divisions of the High Court
Website: https://www.judiciary.org.za/index.php
Tax CourtsTax Courts are established by the President of the Republic by proclamation in the Gazette. In March 2003 the tax courts were established for areas. The special income tax courts constituted before 1 April 2003 for the hearing of income tax appeals were abolished. A tax court is established for the area of the Division of the High Court.
The Judge President of the Division of the High Court nominates and seconds a judge or an acting judge of the division to be the president of the tax court. A secondment applies for a period, or for the hearing of a particular case. The President of the Republic appoints the panel of members of a tax court for a term of office of five years. A member is eligible for reappointment for a further period or periods as the President may think fit. The President of the Republic may terminate the appointment of a member at any time for misconduct, incapacity or incompetence. A member’s appointment lapses in the event that the tax court is abolished. A member of the tax court must perform his/her functions independently, impartially and without fear, favour or prejudice. The Commissioner of the South African Revenue Services appoints the registrar of the tax court. The registrar and persons appointed in the office of the registrar are SARS employees. When the tax court sits to hear an appeal, the proceedings are not public. The president of the tax court may in exceptional circumstances, on request of any person, allow that person or any other person to attend the sitting. In such a matter, the court considers any representations made by the ‘appellant’ and a senior SARS official who appears in support of the assessment or ‘decision’. The tax court makes the following orders in
appeals - Appeal against the decision of the tax court Labour Courts and Labour Appeal CourtsThe Labour Courts have the same status as a High Court. They adjudicate matters relating to labour disputes between an employer and employee. It is mainly guided by the Labour Relations Act which deals with matters such as unfair labour practices. The Labour Appeal Court hears appeals against decisions in the Labour Court and this is the highest court for labour appeals. Website: Labour Courts (judiciary.org.za) Land Claims CourtThe Land Claims Court specializes in dealing with disputes that arise out of laws that underpin South Africa’s land reform initiative. These are the Restitution of Land Rights Act, 1994, the Land Reform (Labour Tenants) Act, 1996 and the Extension of Security of Tenure Act, 1997. The Land Claims Court has the same status as the High Courts. Any appeal against a decision of the Land Claims Court lies with the Supreme Court of Appeal, and if appropriate, to the Constitutional Court. The Land Claims Court can hold hearings in any part of the country, if it thinks this will make it more accessible and it can conduct its proceedings in an informal way if this is appropriate, although its main office is in Randburg. Website: Land Claims Court (judiciary.org.za) Magistrates’ CourtsThe Magistrates’ Courts are the district courts and the regional courts. The district courts hear limited types of civil cases. They cannot deal with certain matters such as divorce, arguments about a person's will and matters where it is asked if a person is mentally sane or not. The types of civil matters that the magistrates’ courts hear are set out in the Magistrates Courts Act (32 of 1944 as amended). With effect from 27 March 2014, district courts hear matters up to the amount of R200 000. Regional courts hear civil matters above R200 000 up to and including 400 000. The Minister may change these amounts at any time by notice in the Gazette. Some of the civil matters that the Magistrates Courts hear are: Divorces Criminal matters in the Magistrates’ Courts
Specialised Commercial Crimes Courts (SCCCs)The Specialised Commercial Crimes Courts operate at the level of the regional courts. These courts hear commercial crime and organised commercial crime matters. The first SCCU was established in 2009. They have grown in number over the years and are now found in all nine regional divisions. See the table below for the spread of SCCCs in each regional division as at 2022. A Regional Magistrate presides in the SCCC. Commercial and organised commercial crimes are investigated by the commercial branches of the South African Police Services. These cases are prosecuted by the Specialised Commercial Crimes Unit of the NPA.
Small Claims CourtsSmall Claims Courts are established for a magisterial district. The court hears civil matters that arose in the magisterial district in which the Small Claims Court is situated. The maximum amount of a claim that may be brought is determined in a Notice in the Government Gazette. In 2019 the amount was determined as R20 000. Natural persons are allowed to bring claims in the Small Claims Courts whilst businesses, for example companies, close corporations, solely owned businesses and partnerships, are not permitted to do so. Claims may be brought against a business. A claim may not be brought against the State. There is no Magistrate or Judge in the Small Claims Court. The presiding officer is a Commissioner who is usually a practicing advocate or an attorney. Commissioners are appointed by the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services. The Commissioners render their services without any remuneration. Legal representation is not permitted during the proceedings in the court. The proceedings in the court are different from a Magistrates’ Court or the High Court. The Commissioner asks each party questions to determine what transpired in the case. Some types of matters that the Small Claims Courts do not hear are divorce, the validity or interpretation of a will, the mental status of a person, defamation, malicious prosecution, wrongful imprisonment and wrongful arrest. You can contact your nearest Small Claims Court through your nearest Magistrate’s Court. Website: www.justice.gov.za/scc/scc.htm Equality CourtsEquality Courts have been established to help someone who believes that they have suffered unfair discrimination, hate speech or harassment. The Equality courts were extended to the Magistrates’ Courts primarily to bring access to justice to the marginalized and vulnerable citizens to assert their rights. Anyone can take a case to the Equality Court, even if you are not directly involved in what happened. This means a complaint to the court can be made against someone or an organisation you believe have failed to respect the rights of another person. Proceedings in the High Courts are costly for the majority of people, however in the equality courts, legal representation is not a prerequisite and there are no cost incurred when lodging a complaint, thus making it easy to access. In terms of the Equality Act the South African Human Rights Commission and Commission on Gender Equality are mandated to assist complainants in taking their matters to the Equality Courts. Website: www.justice.gov.za/EQCact/eqc_main.html Maintenance CourtsA maintenance court is not a specialised court per se. A very high number of maintenance applications are heard in the maintenance courts. The court is located at each Magistrate's Court. A Maintenance Officer is in charge of the maintenance matter. The Maintenance Officer assists with application for child maintenance. Maintenance is at the request of the biological or legal guardian of the child. The maintenance sum received by the guardian is for the upkeep of the child. A child’s upkeep is not limited to groceries but encompasses all the necessary needs of the child. A maintenance defendant is someone who is legally obliged to maintain a child. Paternity is proved through DNA testing. The amount that is necessary for the maintenance of a child differs from one family to the next in line with their living standards. The amount that the defendant can afford is important. The say so of a defendant and claimant about their income and the needs of a child does not suffice. Each party has to provide proof of their earnings and expenses. Once a matter is in the maintenance court, if the defendant agrees to pay maintenance and both the defendant and the guardian of the child agree on an amount of the maintenance, then the maintenance officer will request the Magistrate to make the offer an order of court. This removes the need for a drawn out trial and streamlines the court process. If no agreement on the amount is reached or the defendant refuses to make an offer acceptable to the guardian of the child, then the maintenance officer will request the Magistrate to conduct a trial. In such an instance the Magistrate will consider all the financial circumstances and make an order for maintenance. Legal representation is allowed. The proceedings are recorded but conducted informally due to the nature of maintenance matters. The Magistrate can ask many questions. Our maintenance courts are there to ensure that those who have a duty to maintain minors are held accountable. A person may be criminally charged for a deliberate failure to pay maintenance that arose from a court order. The court must first establish that there was a deliberate default. If, for example, the debtor was not earning an income because he/she was unemployed during a particular time when he/she was liable to pay maintenance, then it cannot be said that the failure to pay was deliberate. If a debtor is found guilty of failure to pay maintenance, the person has a criminal conviction. Apart from a criminal prosecution, the debtor’s property may be attached and sold by the Sherriff in civil proceedings. A maintenance debt has the same effect as a civil debt. A maintenance debt is enforceable. A debtor’s pension, annuity, gratuity, emoluments or debt owing to the maintenance debtor may also be attached. Follow this link for more information on how to claim maintenance. Sexual Offences CourtsIn order to combat sexual violence, especially against women and children, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DOJ&CD) reintroduced the Sexual Offences Courts in the country with the aim to:
As of April 2022, 116 regional courts were upgraded to Sexual Offences Courts. A sexual offences court is defined as a regional court that deals exclusively with cases of sexual offences. Hybrid sexual offences court is defined as a regional court dedicated for the adjudication of sexual offences cases in any specified area. It is a court that is established to give priority to sexual offences cases, whilst permitted to deal with other cases. Follow this link for more information on Sexual Offences Courts or to view the list of Sexual Offences Courts. Children’s CourtsA Children’s Court is a special court which deals with issues affecting children. Every Magistrate’s Court in South Africa is a Children’s Court. The children’s court also takes care of children who are in need of care and protection and makes decisions about children who are abandoned, neglected or abused. Any person/ child may approach the clerk of the children’s court when he/ she believe that a child may be in need of care and protection. The Children’s Court can place a child in safe care or refer the child and/or the parent to services that they may require. Children’s Court does not deal with criminal cases. Follow this link for more information on the Children's Courts and Child Justice issues. ___________________ What do courts try to determine before they rule on whether the government can limit First Amendment free speech rights?Under a strict scrutiny analysis, a law that restricts freedom of speech must achieve a compelling government interest and be narrowly tailored to that interest or be the least speech-restrictive means available to the government. Strict scrutiny also is used when a law targets a specific religious faith.
Which action would most likely be protected under the First Amendment apex?The First Amendment protects political and religious freedom, with the rights to speech, press, assembly, petition, and religion. Speaking out against a government official is tied to the First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
Do you have free speech in court?Courtrooms and courthouses generally are places where free speech may be restricted. 1. Expressive conduct as a form of speech ― Free speech protection applies not only to spoken or written words but also to expressive conduct. Wearing an armband, for example, may be a symbolic act protected by the First Amendment.
When would the government have a right to limit an individual's speech?Government can limit some protected speech by imposing "time, place and manner" restrictions. This is most commonly done by requiring permits for meetings, rallies and demonstrations. But a permit cannot be unreasonably withheld, nor can it be denied based on content of the speech.
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What do courts try to determine before they rule on whether the government can limit First Amendment free speech right in a certain situation apex?
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