Different Courts
In the South African judicial system there are various courts which have different mandates and different jurisdictions or the “righs to hear a certain kind of case.”
South Africa’s courts encompass Small Claims Courts; Magistrates Courts, which comprise of Regional and District courts; High Courts; the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court to name only a few of the main courts.
Besides different kinds of matters, the different courts also operate in different geographical areas as well as within certain monetary limits.
So which court do I use ?
The court you decide to approach for you matter is all dependant on your type of matter. It’s difficult to allocate specific matters to specific courts as most matters will be considered by an individual’s attorney on a case to case basis and then advised as to which court to approach.
There are however some guidelines to use for yourself, which can assist in determining initial expectations about a certain court’s jurisdiction and these are as follows;
The Small Claims Court has jurisdiction to hear any civil matter involving a maximum value of R15,000.
The District Court of the Magistrates Court may hear civil and criminal matters, to the value of R200,000 and impose criminal fines up to the value of R120,000. It may not try cases of murder, treason, rape, terrorism, or sabotage and it usually deals with less serious offences.
The Regional Court of the Magistrates Court may hear civil and criminal matters, from the value of R200,000 to R400,000 and impose criminal fines up to the value of R600,000. It usually deals with more serious criminal matters for example, murder, rape, armed robbery and serious assault.
The High Court may hear civil and criminal matters. It will usually only hear civil matters which involve claims of more than R100 000, and criminal cases which are of a serious nature. The High Court may also hear appeals or reviews from the lower Magistrates Courts which fall into the High Court’s geographical jurisdiction. The High Court will hear matters involving a person’s status such as adoption or insolvency.
There are many other more specialised courts which hear a vast variety of different matters such as Child Justice Courts, Maintenance Courts, Children’s Courts, Courts for Chiefs and Headmen, Sexual Offences Courts, Domestic Violence Courts and Equality Courts.
To consider your matter and help you identify the right court for you the best person to speak to will be your attorney.
Sources:
Government Gazette No. 37477 on the 27th of March 2014.
Government Gazette No. 37450 on the 18th of March 2014.
The South African Judiciary; High Courts (Date Unknown) Accessed at: http://www.judiciary.org.za/high-courts.html (Accessed on 19 May 2017)
The South African Judiciary; Magistrates Courts (Date Unknown) Accessed at: http://www.judiciary.org.za/magistrates-courts.html (Accessed on 19 May 2017)
