- Title
- Rationalisation of magisterial districts to transform the judiciary and widen access to justice under the RSA constitution of 1996
- Creator
- Skosana, Jacob
- Subject
- Justice, Administration of
- Subject
- Law and socialism
- Subject
- Human rights -- South Africa
- Date Issued
- 2024-01
- Date
- 2024-01
- Type
- Doctoral theses
- Type
- text
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/10353/28162
- Identifier
- vital:72777
- Description
- The study examines how pre-1994 magisterial districts jurisdictions denied access to justice to many South Africans, and ongoing efforts to reverse this injustice. Delayed rationalisation of the judiciary and reform of the courts territorial jurisdiction during the apartheid era exacerbated the problem. The courts administered justice along spatial racial divide, and given the location of the courts, many black communities had to commute long distances to access justice and at a great cost and inconvenience. The Constitution of South Africa of 1996 provides not only for the right to equality before the law and equal protection and benefit of the law but also the right to access the courts and seek recourse. In a period spanning eight years from December 2014, new magisterial districts were proclaimed in all the nine provinces of South Africa. Despite this milestone and the imperative of the 1996 Constitution, the rationalisation process is still in its infancy: old legislation and judicial structures remain intact; divisions of the High Court continue to exercise jurisdictions determined for the pre-1994 constitutional dispensation. The status quo continues to perpetuate the denial of access to justice to communities especially those living in areas that hitherto formed part of the former homelands and self-governing ‘states’. The study was conducted through a desktop survey of primary and secondary material relevant to the rationalisation process. It drew lessons from the re-demarcation of municipal boundaries which, like magisterial districts, were based on racial laws and policies of the past. It also contrasted rationalisation principles in comparable jurisdictions. The findings provide a useful contribution to the ongoing effort to effect rationalisation of the court system. They also contribute to knowledge and enriches our understanding of the relationship that underpins the administration of justice in a dispensation driven by democratic, human rights and constitutional ethos.
- Description
- Thesis (PhD (LLD)) -- Faculty of Law, 2024
- Format
- computer
- Format
- online resource
- Format
- application/pdf
- Format
- 1 online resource (279 leaves)
- Format
- Publisher
- University of Fort Hare
- Publisher
- Faculty of Law
- Language
- English
- Rights
- University of Fort Hare
- Rights
- All Rights Reserved
- Rights
- Open Access
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UFH Nelson R Mandela School of Law
| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | SOURCE1 | Jacob SKOSANA LLD final text January 2024 PDF doc.pdf | 2 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |