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The government has approved the rationalisation of the country’s court system.
Justice and constitutional development minister Mmamoloko Kubayi announced on Tuesday that the cabinet had approved a master plan to redraw court borders and establish new seats of justice where they are needed most.
Kubayi said millions of South Africans living in rural villages and former homelands still had to travel far, spending money they cannot afford, to access a courtroom.
“After 30 years of constitutional democracy, the rationalisation of the courts is long overdue,” Kubayi said, emphasising that the reforms were a constitutional mandate to build a legal system that served everyone equally.
Kubayi said the high court restructuring marked the climax of a decade-long process that began in 2014, which focused on remapping local magisterial districts in the nine provinces.
Kubayi said the overhaul was driven by a report from an independent committee chaired by retired deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke.
“To keep things running, the government is introducing these changes in two steps, starting with an immediate shake-up on July 1.”
During the first phase, Kubayi said, the government would change court boundaries and use existing buildings so high courts would be closer for more people.
“To help courts deal with backlogs and handle cases faster, the government is working with the National Treasury to hire 20% more permanent judges. Finally, new rules signed by the chief justice will take effect immediately to make sure acting judges are chosen and managed more effectively.”
Kubayi said the second phase would focus on physical expansion.
He said the government planned to upgrade existing magistrates’ courts or construct new facilities to establish permanent local high court seats.
Kubayi highlighted that the developments would be in five strategic hubs for local seats of the high courts. These will be in Palm Ridge in Gauteng, in Welkom in the Free State, in Rustenburg in North West, in Upington in the Northern Cape, and in Thembalethu in the Western Cape.
“In one of the more sensitive regional changes, the government intends to move the main seat of the Eastern Cape high court from Makhanda to Bhisho.”
Kubayi recognised the economic and historical weight of the move.
She noted that this would happen only after consultations with local stakeholders.
“The reform package also includes a surprise addition not featured in the Moseneke committee’s report. A specialised court in Kempton Park, right next to OR Tambo airport, is being fast-tracked to handle urgent immigration, cross-border crime and transit-related legal matters.”
Kubayi said the government was taking a line to ensure these structural changes did not look like political interference.
“The Moseneke committee recommended reviewing or abolishing the traditional holiday recess periods for judges to clear backlogs. The executive will leave that decision to the chief justice.”
She said the reforms were more than just a redrawing of maps and were a fundamental push to unify magistrates and judges into a single, independent judicial system that put the needs of ordinary citizens first.
TimesLIVE
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