Western Cape Division

Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa
33°55′30″S18°25′4″E
Established	1 January 1828(Supreme Court of the Cape Colony)
Jurisdiction	Most ofWestern Cape,South Africa
Location	Cape Town
Coordinates	33°55′30″S18°25′4″E
Composition method	Presidentialappointment on the advice of theJudicial Service Commission
Authorized by	Chp. 8 of theConstitution;Superior Courts Act, 2013
Appeals to	Supreme Court of AppealorConstitutional Court
Number of positions	31
Judge President
Currently	Nolwazi Mabindla-Boqwana
Since	2023

TheWestern Cape Division of theHigh Court of South Africa(previously named theCape Provincial Divisionand theWestern Cape High Court,and commonly known as theCape High Court) is asuperiorcourt of lawwithgeneral jurisdictionover theWestern Capeprovince ofSouth Africa(except for theMurraysburgdistrict which falls within the jurisdiction of theEastern Cape Division).The division, which sits atCape Town,consists of 31 judges led by Acting Judge PresidentPatricia Goliath,former Acting Constitutional Court Justice.

History

Historical changes in the area of jurisdiction of the Western Cape Division

The origins of the Western Cape Division lie in the Supreme Court of theColony of the Cape of Good Hope,which was established on 1 January 1828as the highest court of the Cape Colony. It was created by theFirst Charter of Justice,letters patentissued byGeorge IVon 24 August 1827.Upon the creation of theUnion of South Africain 1910, the Supreme Court of the Cape Colony was transformed by theSouth Africa Act 1909into the Cape of Good Hope Provincial Division of the newSupreme Court of South Africa.

Originally the Cape Division had jurisdiction over the whole of theCape Province,although concurrently with the Eastern Cape (Grahamstown) and Griqualand West (Kimberley) Local Divisions in their areas of jurisdiction. However, in 1957 the Eastern Cape division was elevated to the status of a provincial division, and in 1969 the Griqualand West division was similarly elevated, becoming the Northern Cape Division.Upon elevation these divisions became independent from the Cape Division.

When the finalConstitution of South Africacame into force in 1997, the Cape of Good Hope Division of the Supreme Court became a High Court. In 2003, in terms of theInterim Rationalisation of Jurisdiction of High Courts Act, 2001,the area of jurisdiction of the Cape High Court was modified to coincide with the boundaries of theWestern Capeprovince.TheRenaming of High Courts Act, 2008renamed it to the "Western Cape High Court, Cape Town".In 2013, in the restructuring brought about by theSuperior Courts Act,it became the Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa.

Judges

The Western Cape Division has a complement of 31 judges. Judges are addressed as "the Honourable Justice", or just "My Lord" or "My Lady". As of 2012the judges are:

• Patricia Goliath(Acting Judge President)
• André Le Grange(Acting Deputy Judge President)
• Rosheni Allie
• Elizabeth Baartman
• Ashley Binns-Ward
• André Blignault
• Leonard Bozalek
• Dennis Davis
• Siraj Desai
• Daniel Dlodlo
• Nathan Erasmus
• Chantal Fortuin
• Burton Fourie
• Patric Gamble
• Barend Griesel
• Robert Henney
• Willem Louw
• Shenaaz Meer
• Tandazwa Ndita
• Vincent Saldanha
• Monde Samela
• Elize Steyn
• Anton Veldhuizen
• Basheer Waglay
• James Yekiso
• Dumisani Zondi

There are currently five vacant seats on the Bench.

Circuits

The rural districts of the Western Cape, outside of the Cape Town metropolitan area, are divided intocircuits.Judges of the division travel the circuits at least twice a year.

• The Western Circuit sits inVredendalandVanrhynsdorp,and hears cases from theWest Coast.
• The Northern Circuit sits inWorcesterandBeaufort West,and hears cases from the upperBreede River Valleyand theGreat Karoo.
• The Eastern Circuit sits inGeorge,Mossel Bay,KnysnaandOudtshoorn,and hears cases from theGarden Routeand theLittle Karoo.
• The Southern Circuit sits inSwellendamand hears cases from theOverbergand the lower Breede River Valley.
• The Cape Circuit sits inPaarlandStellenbosch,and hears only criminal cases from theBolandand theHelderberg.

References

Sources

• Zimmermann, Reinhard;Visser, D. P. (1996).Southern Cross: Civil Law and Common Law in South Africa.Oxford University Press.doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198260875.001.0001.ISBN0-19-826087-3.

External links

• Decisions of the Western Cape Division