Judgments of the Constitutional Court of South Africa |
---|
The table below lists the judgments of the Constitutional Court of South Africa delivered in 2009.
The members of the court at the start of 2009 were Chief Justice Pius Langa, Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke, and judges Edwin Cameron, Yvonne Mokgoro, Sandile Ngcobo, Bess Nkabinde, Kate O'Regan, Albie Sachs, Thembile Skweyiya, Johann van der Westhuizen and Zak Yacoob. Chief Justice Langa and Justices Mokgoro, O'Regan and Sachs retired in October 2009, as they were all founding members of the court whose terms of office expired. They were replaced by the appointment of Johan Froneman, Chris Jafta, Sisi Khampepe and Mogoeng Mogoeng, and Justice Ngcobo was elevated to the post of Chief Justice.
The Constitutional Court of South Africa is a supreme constitutional court established by the Constitution of South Africa, and is the apex court in the South African judicial system, with general jurisdiction.
The Judicial Service Commission is a body specially constituted by the South African Constitution to recommend persons for appointment to the judiciary of South Africa.
Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa, an important case in South African law, was heard in the Constitutional Court on May 20, 2009, with judgment handed down on July 22, 2009.
Hassam v Jacobs NO and Others, an important case in South African law, was heard in the Constitutional Court on 19 February 2009, with judgment handed down on 15 July. The applicant was a party to a polygamous Muslim marriage, whose husband had died intestate. The Constitutional Court held that precluding the applicant from inheriting unfairly discriminated on the grounds of religion, marital status and gender, and was therefore inconsistent with section 9 of the Constitution. Accordingly, it was held that the applicant could inherit. The ambit of this judgment extended the ruling in Daniels v Campbell to polygamous Muslim marriages.