Ashton Schippers | |
---|---|
Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal | |
Assumed office 1 June 2018 (Acting: 1 November 2016 – 31 May 2018) | |
Appointed by | Jacob Zuma |
Judge of the High Court | |
In office 15 February 2013 –31 May 2018 | |
Appointed by | Jacob Zuma |
Division | Western Cape |
Personal details | |
Born | Athlone,Cape Town Cape Province,Union of South Africa | 19 June 1958
Alma mater | University of South Africa (LLB) University of Cape Town (LLM) Harvard Law School (LLM) |
Ashton Schippers (born 19 June 1958) is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. Before his elevation to that court in June 2018,he served in the Western Cape High Court from February 2013 to May 2018. He was formerly an advocate in Cape Town,where he took silk in 2004 and where he was chairperson of the bar council between 2004 and 2006.
Schippers was born on 19 June 1958. [1] He was designated as Coloured under apartheid and grew up in a large family,one of seven siblings,in Bridgetown,Athlone on the Cape Flats of Cape Town. [2] After matriculating at Bridgetown High School in Athlone, [1] he enrolled at the University of the Western Cape,but he left in his second year in order to take up odd jobs to support himself. [3] Instead,he studied part-time at the University of South Africa,where he completed a BProc in 1982 and an LLB in 1986. [1]
In later years,he completed two master's degrees:an LLM at the University of Cape Town in 1988,focusing on company law and international law of the sea,and an LLM at Harvard Law School in 1991,supported by a Fulbright Scholarship and focusing on international law and constitutional law. [1] [2] [3] While serving on the bench in 2019,he completed a postgraduate diploma in theology at the University of Stellenbosch. [1]
While an LLB student,Schippers served his articles of clerkship at a firm in Cape Town,and upon his graduation in 1986 he continued working in the city,first briefly as a prosecutor and then briefly as a magistrate. [1] After two years as an attorney at Fairbridges Attorneys in Cape Town,he moved to Boston,Massachusetts in 1990 to take up his study at Harvard. Thereafter he worked in Washington,D. C. between 1991 and 1993,first as an attorney at Fulbright &Jaworski and then as an associate at the National Center for Dispute Resolution. [1]
Upon his return to South Africa,Schippers was admitted to the Cape Bar as an advocate in June 1993. He was also admitted to the New York Bar in 1995. [1] Over the next two decades,he practised as an advocate in Cape Town,taking silk on 15 February 2004. [1] He developed a reputation for practice of public law and featured as counsel in several notable Constitutional Court cases,including Government v Grootboom ,on the justiciability of socioeconomic rights; Mohamed v President ,on the legality of extradition or deportation to a second country where the subject faces the death penalty (in this case,the deportation of Khalfan Khamis Mohamed to the United States);and United Democratic Movement v President,which established the constitutionality of floor-crossing. [4]
He was the chairperson of the Cape Bar Council between 2004 and 2006, [1] in which capacity he was involved in adjudicating a complaint of racism against Judge John Hlophe. [5] [6] [7] In addition,on numerous occasions between 1998 and 2011,he served as an acting judge in the Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa. [1]
In October 2012,Schippers was one of eight candidates shortlisted and interviewed for permanent appointment to five vacancies at the Western Cape High Court. [8] He was nominated by Advocates for Transformation. [4] During his interview with the Judicial Service Commission,Schippers was asked about the slow pace of transformation in the legal profession and raised his concern with racially skewed briefing patterns,saying that,despite his high status in the profession,he remained dependent on briefs from the state attorney because private firms were reluctant to brief black advocates. [9] [10] The Commission recommended Schippers as suitable for appointment, [11] and President Jacob Zuma confirmed his appointment in February 2013, [12] [13] with effect from 15 February. [1]
Schippers's most notable judgement in the Western Cape High Court was Democratic Alliance v South African Broadcasting Corporation,in which the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) sought an urgent interdict compelling the public South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) to suspend SABC executive Hlaudi Motsoeneng. The DA's application was based on a report by the Public Protector,which found evidence of misconduct by Motsoeneng and proposed as remedial action that Motsoeneng should be suspended pending a disciplinary inquiry. [2] In October 2014,Schippers ruled in favour of the DA,granting the requested interdict. [14] [15] More significant,however,was his assessment of the legal status of the powers of the Public Protector,especially the power to "take remedial action" as provided for in Section 182 of the Constitution. Schippers ruled that the Public Protector's remedial action was not binding or legally enforceable in the same way as a court order,but that it was not merely recommendatory,either,and could not merely be disregarded by organs of state. According to Schippers,the decision not to implement remedial action had to be rational and could be subject to rationality review by the courts. [16] [17]
This reasoning was of immediate political import because of recent findings by the Public Protector against President Jacob Zuma in the Nkandlagate scandal. [16] [18] [19] The incumbent Public Protector,Thuli Madonsela,objected strenuously to the judgement,saying that it undermined her office's constitutional authority and that it would make enforcement contingent on "financially crippling" litigation by the Public Protector. [20] Several months later,Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services,and its chairperson Mathole Motshekga,forced Madonsela publicly to apologise for having called Schippers's judgement "a cut and paste judgement". [21]
Motsoeneng also appealed Schippers's ruling. In October 2015,in SABC v DA,the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal,upholding Schippers's order that the SABC should institute disciplinary proceedings against Motsoeneng. However,it rejected Schippers's reasoning to this end,finding instead that the Public Protector's directives were indeed binding and enforceable. [22] The Constitutional Court ultimately shared the Supreme Court's view in Economic Freedom Fighters v Speaker of the National Assembly ,which tested the enforceability of Madonsela's directives in the Nkandla saga. [23] [24] Madonsela appeared as amicus curiae in the latter case,maintaining her argument that Schippers's judgement had denuded the constitutional authority of her office. [25] Asked about the saga later,Schippers said that he accepted the decision of the appellate courts but that his own starting point had been the notion that the Public Protector's office was based on the ombudsman model. [2]
During his five years in the High Court,Schippers served a lengthy stint as an acting judge in the Supreme Court of Appeal between November 2016 and May 2018. [1] During that time,he wrote the Supreme Court's unanimous judgement in Scalabrini Centre v Minister of Home Affairs,setting aside as unlawful the Department of Home Affairs's decision to close the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office. [2]
In April 2018,Schippers was one of nine candidates shortlisted for three permanent vacancies at the Supreme Court of Appeal. [26] He was nominated by Senior Counsel Vincent Maleka,who noted "his industry and pursuit of justice". During his interview with the Judicial Service Commission,he was asked about his judgement in DA v SABC and commended for his contribution to the development of junior counsel from underrepresented groups;he said that,as Senior Counsel,he had always practised with black juniors,aside from one instance when a white female junior was "foisted" upon him. [2] The Judicial Service Commission recommended him for appointment,alongside Tati Makgoka and Mahube Molemela, [27] and he joined the bench on 1 June 2018. [1]
He is married to Brenda Schippers and has two children. [1] He is Christian,and,an avid cyclist,has completed multiple long-distance cyclosportives through the Alps and Pyrenees as well as many Argus Cycle Tours. [4] [2]
Sandile Ngcobo is a retired South African judge who was the Chief Justice of South Africa from October 2009 to August 2011. He served in the Constitutional Court of South Africa from August 1999 until his retirement in August 2011. Before that,he was a judge of the Cape Provincial Division and the Labour Appeal Court.
Thulisile Nomkhosi "Thuli" Madonsela is a South African advocate and professor of law,holding a chair in social justice at Stellenbosch University since January 2018. She served as the Public Protector of South Africa from 19 October 2009 to 14 October 2016. In 1996,she helped draft the final constitution of South Africa promulgated by then-President Nelson Mandela.
Zukisa Laura Lumka Tshiqi is a South African judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. She formerly served in the Supreme Court of Appeal from December 2009 until October 2019,when President Cyril Ramaphosa elevated her to the Constitutional Court. She was a practising attorney until she was first appointed to the bench in the Gauteng High Court in 2005.
Nonkosi Zoliswa Mhlantla is a South African judge of the Constitutional Court. Elevated to that court in December 2015,she was formerly a judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal between December 2008 and November 2015. She entered legal practice as an attorney in her hometown,Port Elizabeth,and joined the bench in June 2002,becoming the first woman ever to be appointed to the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa.
Steven Arnold Majiedt is a South African judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. He joined the Constitutional Court in October 2019 as an appointee of President Cyril Ramaphosa. Formerly a practicing advocate,he served in the Supreme Court of Appeal from 2010 to 2019 and in the Northern Cape High Court from 2000 to 2010.
Leona Valerie Theron is a judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Before her elevation in July 2017,she served in the Supreme Court of Appeal between December 2010 and June 2017. She is the first Coloured judge to serve in the Constitutional Court.
Hlaudi Motsoeneng is the leader of African Content Movement (ACM) who served as the acting Chief operating officer of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) from 2011 to 2013. Motsoeneng was removed from his position as Chief operating officer after his dishonesty was revealed,and he was found to have lied about his qualifications. After being removed as acting Chief operating officer it was announced that Motsoeneng would move back to his previous position as Group Executive Editor of Provinces and Corporate Affairs of the SABC. In December 2016,the Western Cape High Court ruled that Motsoeneng's appointment as Group Executive was illegal and that he was "not entitled to occupy any position at the SABC". In June 2022 the state capture commission proposed criminal investigations into possible contraventions of the Public Finance Management Act when group CEO Lulama Mokhobo and COO Motsoeneng concluded an SABC agreement with the Gupta owned TNA newspaper. In July 2022 the High Court dismissed Motsoeneng's bid to appeal the repayment,with interest,of R11.5 million obtained unlawfully when the SABC concluded a deal with MultiChoice.
John Harold Jeffery has been the Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development in South Africa since 2013. He was appointed by President Jacob Zuma in a cabinet reshuffle on 9 July 2013,and has remained in the post throughout the tenure of current President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Xola Mlungisi Petse is a retired South African judge who was the Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Appeal between 2019 and 2024. A former attorney,he joined the Supreme Court as a puisne judge in June 2012. Before that,he was a judge of the Eastern Cape High Court from July 2005 to May 2012.
Rammaka Steven Mathopo is a judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Before his elevation to that court in January 2022,he served in the Supreme Court of Appeal between June 2015 and December 2021. He was formerly a judge of the Gauteng High Court from January 2006 to May 2015,and he practised as an attorney for 17 years before then.
Owen Lloyd Rogers is a South African judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa. Before his appointment to that court in August 2022,he served in the Western Cape Division of the High Court for nine years,having joined the bench in February 2013. Formerly an advocate and senior counsel at the Cape Bar,he was also a judge of the Competition Appeal Court between 2016 and 2022.
Visvanathan Ponnan is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. He joined the Gauteng High Court in 2001 and was elevated to the Supreme Court of Appeal in December 2004. Before that,he practised as an advocate in Durban between 1985 and 2001.
Glenn Graham Goosen is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. He was formerly a judge of the Eastern Cape High Court from January 2012 until December 2022,when he was appointed to the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Dumisani Hamilton Zondi is a South African judge who is the Deputy President of the Supreme Court of Appeal. He was appointed as the chairperson of the Electoral Court in December 2022. Before his elevation to the Supreme Court in June 2014,he served in the Western Cape High Court between 2007 and 2014,as well as in the Competition Appeal Court between 2011 and 2014. He entered legal practice as an attorney in 1986.
Tati Moffat Makgoka is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. Formerly an attorney in Pretoria,he served in the Gauteng High Court from August 2009 until June 2018,when he was elevated to the Supreme Court of Appeal. He was an acting judge in the Constitutional Court in 2023.
Boissie Henry Mbha is a retired South African judge who served in the Supreme Court of Appeal from June 2014 to August 2022. He was also the chairperson of the Electoral Court from 2018 to 2022,and he acted in the Constitutional Court for a term in 2016. A former attorney,he was appointed to the bench in October 2004 as a judge of the High Court's Gauteng Division.
Aubrey Phago Ledwaba is a South African judge who is currently serving as the Deputy Judge President of the Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa. Formerly a practising attorney in Gauteng,he joined the bench as a puisne judge in November 2005 and was elevated to his leadership position in July 2013. He was an acting judge in the Constitutional Court in 2019 and an acting judge in the Supreme Court of Appeal between 2020 and 2021.
David Martin Dennis is a South African legal academic,jurist,and retired judge who was the Judge President of the Competition Appeal Court between 2000 and 2020. He served concurrently as a judge of the Western Cape Division of the High Court of South Africa between 1998 and 2020. Retired from the bench since December 2020,he is currently an emeritus professor at the University of Cape Town and the chairperson of the Companies Tribunal.
Robert Wolseley Nugent is a South African retired judge who served in the Supreme Court of Appeal from 2002 to 2013. Formerly an advocate and Senior Counsel in Johannesburg,he was appointed to the bench in 1993 as a judge of the Transvaal Provincial Division. In 2018,he chaired the Nugent Commission into maladministration at the South African Revenue Service.
On 21 February 2024,the National Assembly of South Africa voted to impeach Judge John Hlophe,a judge of the High Court of South Africa and the judge president of the Western Cape Division. Hlophe was accused of improper interference in the deliberations of the Constitutional Court in litigation involving the interests of Jacob Zuma. His impeachment was the result of a finding by the Judicial Service Commission that his conduct in this regard amounted to gross misconduct. Hlophe was the first judge to be impeached under the post-apartheid Constitution.