• Constitutional Court
• Supreme Court of Appeal
• High Court of South Africa
• Circuit Courts
• Special Income Tax Courts
• Labour Courts and Labour Appeal Courts
• Divorce Courts
• Land Claims Courts
• The Water Tribunal
• Truth and Reconciliation Commission
• Small Claims Courts
• Magistrates’ Courts
• Community Courts and Courts for Chiefs and Headmen

The Constitutional Court is the court which has the final say on all matters relating to the Constitution of South Africa. Its decisions on the constitution are binding on all other courts. There are nine judges who make up the court. The head of the Constitutional Court is Chief Justice Pius Langa and the Deputy Chief Justice is Judge Dikgang Moseneke. This court came into existence in 1994.

You can contact the Constitutional Court in Braamfontein, Johannesburg:

Constitutional Court of South Africa
Braampark Forum II, 33 Hoofd Street, Braamfontein, 2017
Private Bag X32, Braamfontein, 2017
Tel: 011 403 8032

You can read the decisions of this court on the constitutional court website.

The Supreme Court of Appeal is the court which has the final say on all matters, except those that involve the constitution. For example, all criminal appeal cases from the High Court end up in this court, unless the appeal relates to a point of constitutional law, in which case the Constitutional Court has the final say. The Supreme Court of Appeal used to be called “The Appellate Division”, as it only hears cases on appeal. Decisions of the Supreme Court of Appeal are binding on all courts of a lower order. The President of the Supreme Court of Appeal is the Honourable CT Howie and the Deputy President is the Honourable L Mpati.

You can contact the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein:

Supreme Court of Appeal
Corner Elizabeth and President Brand Streets, Bloemfontein
PO Box 258, Bloemfontein, 9300
Tel: 051 447 2631 / 6029
Fax: 051 447 8098

You can read the decisions of this court at the here.

The next of the “superior courts” is the High Court of South Africa, which used to be called “The Supreme Court”. The High Court divisions have “jurisdiction” – the right to hear a case – over defined geographical areas in which they are situated, and the decisions of the High Courts are binding on magistrate’s courts within their areas of jurisdiction. The High Court divisions have jurisdiction over all matters in their geographical area, but they usually only hear civil matters involving more than R100 000, and serious criminal cases. They also hear any appeals or reviews from lower courts (magistrates’ courts) which fall in their geographical jurisdiction. The High Court usually hears any matter involving a person’s status (for example, adoption, insolvency).

Important officers in a High Court Division:

• The Registrar keeps all the official court documents
• The Family Advocate must be consulted on all matters involving children, as the High Court is the “upper guardian” of all children in South Africa.
• The Master of the High Court keeps all the records relating to people’s estates (deceased or insolvent).
• The Sheriff delivers certain documents to the parties in a civil case, and also attaches property when a warrant is issued.
• The Director of Public Prosecutions, who used to be called the Attorney-General, is responsible for criminal prosecutions by the state.
• The State Attorney is the lawyer who represents the state in civil actions (where the state is suing or being sued).

There are at the moment ten “provincial divisions” of the High Court and three “local divisions” (which have concurrent geographical jurisdiction over an area within a division). These still use names which relate to the old provincial and homeland structure of South Africa before 1994. For example, the division of the High Court in Cape Town is called “The High Court of South Africa: Cape of Good Hope Provincial Division and its Judge President is Judge John Hlophe.

The present thirteen divisions and local divisions of the High Court are situated in:

• Bisho (“Ciskei”)
• Bloemfontein (“Orange Free State”)
• Cape Town (“Cape of Good Hope”)
• Durban (“Durban and Coast Local Division”)
• Grahamstown (“Eastern Cape”)
• Johannesburg (“Witwatersrand Local Division”)
• Kimberley (“Northern Cape”)
• Mmabatho (“Bophuthatswana”)
• Pietermartizburg (“Natal”)
• Port Elizabeth (“South Eastern Cape Local Division”)
• Pretoria (“Transvaal”)
• Thohoyandou (“Venda”)
• Umtata (“Transkei”)

Once the Superior Courts Bill is passed, there will be a division of the High Court in each of the nine provinces with a name matching that of the province, with some provinces have more than one “seat”. Gauteng will have both a Southern (Johannesburg) and Northern (Pretoria) division.

You can contact the Cape High Court in Cape Town:

The High Court of South Africa: Cape of Good Hope Provincial Division
Keerom Street (Queen Victoria Street entrance closed), Cape Town
Private Bag X9020, Cape Town, 8000
Tel: 021 480 2411.

You can read the decisions of the court here.

Circuit Courts are also part of the High Court. They are sit at least twice a year, moving around to serve more rural areas. They can be contacted through the High Court.

The Special Income Tax Courts sit within divisions of the High Court and consists of a judge of the High Court assisted by an accountant of not less than 10 years’ standing, and a representative of the business community. This court deals with any disputes between a taxpayer and the South African Revenue Service, where the dispute involves an income tax assessment of more than R100 000. Appeals against its decisions are made directly to the Supreme Court of Appeal. Tax disputes involving an assessment of less than R100 000 go the Tax Board. The Tax Board is chaired by an attorney, advocate or accountant who works in the private sector and is specifically appointed by the President to assist as chairman of the Board. You can contact the Special Income Tax Court through the High Court and the Tax Board through the South African Revenue Service.

At present there also exist Labour Courts and Labour Appeal Courts, which have jurisdiction over labour matters and are on the same level as the High Court. However, the Superior Courts Bill will abolish the Labour Courts and they will be absorbed into the High Court. You can contact the Labour court through the High Court or by visiting the Labour Courts website.

Since 1998, Divorce Courts have been able to hear any divorce matters – prior to that these courts dealt only with divorces between black people. There are three such courts, the Central, North Eastern and Southern Divorce Courts, and they are designed to deal with less complicated divorces quickly and inexpensively. The Southern Divorce Court is the divorce court that has jurisdiction in the Western Cape, and it has offices at the Family Court Centre in Cape Town and a satellite office in Mitchell’s Plain. You can contact the Family Court Centre through the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court.

The Land Claims Court is on the same level as the High Court but is independent of the High Court. It was established in 1996 and hears cases dealing with the return of land taken away during apartheid (land reform cases). The Land Claims Court has its own rules and is allowed to conduct its proceedings informally and inquisitorially (where the judge asks witnesses questions directly, rather than through lawyers) and the court can sit wherever it needs to, although its main office it in Randburg. Appeals go to the Supreme Court of Appeal unless the appeal is on a constitutional question, in which case they go to the Constitutional Court. The President of the Land Claims Court is Judge Fikile Bam. You can contact the Land Claims Court in Randburg:

Land Claims Court
Trust Bank Centre, Randburg Mall, Corner of Hill Street and Kent Avenue, Randburg, 2194
Private Bag X10060, Randburg, 2125
Tel: 011 781 2291
Fax: 011 781 2217/8
Registrar@landclaims.org.za

You can get Land Claims Court judgments here.

The Water Tribunal is an independent body which has jurisdiction in all the provinces and consists of a chairperson, a deputy chairperson, and additional members. It has jurisdiction over water disputes. Members of the Water Tribunal must have knowledge in law, engineering, water resource management or related fields of knowledge. They are appointed by the Minister on the recommendation of the Judicial Service Commission, the body which chooses judges. The Water Tribunal replaced the Water Court in 1998. You can contact the Water Tribunal through the High Court.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was not a court as such but a different kind of forum set up to deal with crimes related to politics committed during apartheid. The Amnesty Committee had the power to grant amnesty (which means the perpetrator cannot be prosecuted) for politically motivated crimes fully and truthfully confessed, under certain conditions. The Human Rights Violation Committee decided on acts which constituted violations of human rights, based on statements made to the TRC. Once victims of gross human rights violations are identified, they were referred to the Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee, which decides on how to compensate victims. The work of the TRC is almost complete. Those who were not granted amnesty by the TRC for crimes committed during apartheid can be prosecuted.

The Magistrates’ Courts are the lower courts which deal with most matters. They are divided into regional courts and district courts. There are more than 400 magistrates’ courts in South Africa. They do not have jurisdiction to deal with civil matters dealing with more than R100 000 (unless both the person suing and the person being sued agree to limit the claim to less than R100 000). With criminal cases, more serious criminal matters are heard in the regional courts. This is because district courts cannot pass a sentence of more than three years on conviction of an accused. The most serious criminal matters are heard in the High Court. There are also a number of magistrates’ courts that are specialised to be better able to deal with certain types of matters, such as the rape court in Wynberg. You can view a list of Magistrate's Courts in the Western Cape here.

Small Claims Courts have jurisdiction to hear any civil matter involving less than R3000 (unless both the person suing and the person being sued agree to limit the claim to less R3000). The judge in the Small Claims Court is called a commissioner and is usually a practising advocate, attorney or a legal academic who acts as a commissioner free of charge. Neither the plaintiff (the person suing) nor the defendant (the person being sued) are allowed to have lawyers in the case. The commissioner’s decision is final and there is no appeal to a higher court. You can contact your nearest Small Claims Court through your nearest Magistrate’s Court.

Community Courts and Courts for Chiefs and Headmen also have jurisdiction to hear certain matters on the level of magistrates’ courts. They are designed to deal with customary disputes in terms of customary law. An authorised African headman or his deputy may decide cases using indigenous law and custom, brought before him by an African against another African within his area of jurisdiction. These courts are commonly known as chief's courts. A person with a claim has the right to choose whether to bring a claim in the chief’s court or in a magistrate’s court. Contact your local chief if you want a matter heard in this court.