Inner workings
of the Court

The Constitutional Court is tasked with adjudicating constitutional matters which have a direct bearing on the country. The justices of the Court have designed a working process which allows them to meet their responsibilities efficiently and effectively. Here you will learn how the judges of the
Court are appointed and how the Court works.

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Where does the Court derive its powers?

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How is the Court Structured ? 

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What cases are heard by the Court?

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How are judges appointed? 

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How do cases reach the Court?

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What does it cost to bring a case to the Constitutional Court?

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How do litigants file a matter with the Court? 

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What does the Court do with the litigant’s application? 

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How does the Court write its judgments?

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What is the role of the law clerks?

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How does the Constitutional Court function within the broader democracy?

EXPLORE THE ARCHIVE

Audio Visual

President Mandela gives his State of the Nation address in Parliament. Mandela ends his address with the words, “Let us all get down to work”.

“We must construct that people-centred society of freedom in such a manner that it guarantees the political and the human rights of all our citizens.”– President Mandela, extract from State of the Nation Address, 24 May 1994

President Nelson Mandela announces his cabinet. It includes members of the African National Congress, National Party and Inkatha Freedom Party.

“There was pride in serving in the first democratic government in South Africa, and then the additional pride of serving under the iconic leadership of Nelson Mandela … [He] represented the hopes of not just our country, but of oppressed, marginalised and the poor in the world.”– Jay Naidoo, then Minister of RDP housing
“We place our vision of a new constitutional order for South Africa on the table not as conquerors, prescribing to the conquered. We speak as fellow citizens to heal the wounds of the past with the intent of constructing a new order based on justice for all.”– President Nelson Mandela, 10 May 1994