Anaya Nolan
Case law citations in South Africa can be found in the Southern African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII) database, which offers free public access to case law from South Africa and other countries in the region. SAFLII publishes all judgments provided by the courts online, including those from the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court of Appeal, and various High Courts. South African citation practice typically involves adding the abbreviated name of the court at the end, such as (CC) for the Constitutional Court or (SCA) for the Supreme Court of Appeal. Online resources such as Juta's South African Case Law, The South African Law Reports, and Butterworths South African Constitutional Law Reports (SACLR) provide access to case law from 1838 onwards.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Case law citation | Standard Bank of South Africa Limited v. Baxter (Leave to Appeal) (26936/2015) [2025] ZAGPJHC 724 (23 July 2025) |
| Solidarity obo Van Rensburg v. Xone Control Room Management (Pty) Ltd. (C69/2024) [2025] ZALCCT 56 (22 July 2025) | |
| Nadasen v. Laragh Courseware (Pty) Ltd. (C14/25) [2025] ZALCCT 57 (22 July 2025) | |
| Drakenstein Local Municipality v. Matjan and Others (C70/2024) [2025] ZALCCT 55 (22 July 2025) | |
| C.V.D.M. v. S. (Appeal) (A180/2023) [2025] ZAWCHC 299 (22 July 2025) | |
| Londo v. Minister of Police (1855/2024) [2025] ZANWHC 122 (22 July 2025) | |
| Segole v. Road Accident Fund (16923/2022) [2025] ZAGPPHC 725 (21 July 2025) | |
| Sabi River Share Block (Pty) Ltd. t/a Sabi River Sun Resort v. Gold Data Holdings (Pty) Ltd. (22755/23) [2025] ZAWCHC 298 (21 July 2025) | |
| Djoufang v. Snyders and Others (Reasons) (2025/105798) [2025] ZAWCHC 297 (21 July 2025) | |
| Basfour 3327 (Pty) Ltd. v. Thwala and Others (1008/2023) [2025] ZASCA 105 (18 July 2025) | |
| Crous v. Wynberg Boys High School and Others (200/2024) [2025] ZASCA 107 (18 July 2025) | |
| Abbreviation of court name | (CC) Constitutional Court, (A) Appellate Division, (SCA) Supreme Court of Appeal |
| Case law databases | Competition Appeal Court, Competition Tribunal, Constitutional Court, Court of the Commissioner of Patents, Electoral Court, High Courts, Labour Appeal Court, Labour Court, Land Claims Court, Supreme Court of Appeal, Tax Court |
| Online resources | Juta's South African Case Law, The South African Law Reports, Statutes and Regulations of South Africa, Juta's Electronic Law Journals, Butterworths South African Constitutional Law Reports (SACLR), Lexis+ |
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What You'll Learn
Case law databases
There are several databases that can be used to find case law in South Africa. These include:
- LexisNexis: This database contains a wide range of law reports, including the All South African Law Reports, various Butterworths law reports (such as Constitutional Law Reports, Arbitration Law Reports, Labour Law Reports, and Pension Law Reports), the All England Law Reports, and the Canadian Rights Reporter. When searching for a case, you can type the case name and/or citation into the 'Law Reports' search bar. You can refine your search by Referenced Act, Year, Publication Source, Judge, Subject, or Document Type.
- Juta: Juta contains the South African Law Reports, as well as the Zambian, Namibian, and Tanzanian Law Reports. To search for a case, locate the 'Law Reports' search option from the dropdown on the left of the screen. Type in the case name and the year of the case citation. If the case doesn't appear, you can try searching with only one party's name and the year.
- Southern African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII): SAFLII is a member of the Free Access to Law movement and provides free public access to legal information, primarily case law from South Africa and other countries in the region. It publishes all judgments provided by the courts online. SAFLII includes cases from the Constitutional Court, Supreme Court of Appeal, and various High Courts (Eastern Cape, Kwazulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North Gauteng, South Gauteng, and Western Cape). To cite cases from SAFLII, you can use the template provided on the Wikipedia page for SAFLII.
When searching for case law, it is important to understand what the case citation means. The citation typically includes the names of the parties involved, the year the case was reported, the law report it can be found in (including volume and page number), and the division of the court that heard the case. Knowing which law report to search in can save time and effort. Additionally, if you cannot find a case through a database search, you can try browsing cases by court and year, or using only one party's name and the year.
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Court abbreviations
South African citation practice typically adds the abbreviated name of the court at the end of the citation. For example, (CC) denotes the Constitutional Court, (A) stands for the Appellate Division, and (SCA) represents the Supreme Court of Appeal.
- Ciskei High Court - ECB (Eastern Cape Provincial Division)
- Eastern Cape High Court, Grahamstown - ECG
- Transkei High Court, Mthatha - ECM
- South Eastern Cape Local Division, Port Elizabeth - ECP
- Orange Free State Provincial Division, Bloemfontein - FB
- Durban and Coast Local Division, Durban - KZD
- Natal Provincial Division, Pietermaritzburg - KZP
- Witwatersrand Local Division, Johannesburg - GSJ
- Transvaal Provincial Division, Pretoria - GNP
- Northern Cape Provincial Division, Kimberley - NCK
- Bophuthatswana High Court, North West High Court, Mafikeng - NWM
- Venda High Court, Limpopo High Court, Thohoyandou - LT
- Cape Provincial Division, Western Cape High Court, Cape Town - WCC
When searching for a specific case, it is essential to know the correct court abbreviation. Databases like LexisNexis, Juta, and the Southern African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII) can be used to locate cases by their citations, including the court where the case was heard.
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Citing cases
Case citations in South Africa follow a standard format. The format is:
[Year of judgment] + [Neutral citation] + [Date of judgment] + [Case name] + [Court abbreviation] + [Case number]
For example:
N.A.T. v T.M.M. (2023/066211) [2025] ZAGPJHC 727 (27 July 2025)
Mkhonto and Others v Bushbuckridge Local Municipality and Others (218/2024) [2025] ZASCA 111 (23 July 2025)
The year of judgment refers to the year the case was decided. The neutral citation is a unique identifier for the case, typically assigned by the court. The date of judgment is the date on which the judgment was handed down. The case name includes the names of the parties involved in the case. The court abbreviation is the abbreviated name of the court that heard the case, such as (CC) for the Constitutional Court or (SCA) for the Supreme Court of Appeal. Finally, the case number is a unique number assigned to the case by the court.
When citing cases, it is important to ensure that all the information in the citation is accurate and up-to-date. This includes verifying the spelling of the case name and the court abbreviation. In addition, when citing cases from online databases such as the Southern African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII), it is recommended to include the URL of the webpage on which the case appears. This helps to ensure that the source of the information can be easily located and verified.
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Free online resources
Oxford LibGuides
The Oxford LibGuides website offers free resources to help you understand South African case law citations. It provides a list of key abbreviations used in legal citations, including those for court names, such as (CC) for the Constitutional Court and (SCA) for the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Additionally, it offers a web-based service that allows users to search for the meanings of abbreviations used in English language legal publications from various countries, including the British Isles, the Commonwealth, and the United States. This service covers publications from over 295 jurisdictions and includes law reports, periodicals, legislative publications, and major textbooks.
University of Cape Town LibGuide
The University of Cape Town's LibGuide on researching South African law provides detailed instructions on how to locate case law. It offers guidance on using databases such as LexisNexis (South Africa) and Juta.
LexisNexis (South Africa) contains a comprehensive collection of South African law reports, including the All South African Law Reports, Butterworths Constitutional Law Reports, and more. To search for a case, you can enter the case name and citation. The guide also mentions that both LexisNexis and Juta allow users to print cases directly from their databases.
Juta provides access to the South African Law Reports, as well as law reports from other African countries like Zambia, Namibia, and Tanzania. To search for a case on Juta, you can use the 'Law Reports' search function and enter the case name and citation.
The LibGuide also offers alternative search methods if your case doesn't appear in the initial search. You can try searching by the court where the case was heard or use only one of the parties' names and the year.
SAFLII (Southern African Legal Information Institute)
SAFLII is a database that provides access to cases, legislation, and other legal materials from Southern Africa. It includes English translations of selected Afrikaans judgments used in South African law schools. To cite a case from SAFLII, simply look up the case on the database and refer to the URL of the webpage where the case appears.
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Case law history
The notion of a bill of rights for South Africa can be traced back to an ANC document from the early 1920s. The Freedom Charter of 1955 carried this idea forward.
South Africa's case law history includes several landmark cases. Here are some examples:
- Mohamed v President of the RSA (2001): This case addressed the constitutionality of extraditing an accused person to a country that imposes the death penalty.
- Kaunda & Others v The President of the Republic of South Africa and Others (2004): This case established the responsibility of the South African government towards its citizens who are arrested in other countries.
- S v Baloyi (1999): The court ruled that the state has a constitutional duty to provide effective remedies against domestic violence.
- Rail Commuters Action Group and others v Transnet Ltd t/a Metrorail (2004): This case affirmed the obligation of rail service providers to ensure the safety of commuters on trains.
- Minister of Health v Treatment Action Campaign (2002): The court recognised the right to healthcare and access to HIV/AIDS treatment.
- Bhe and Others v The Magistrate, Khayelitsha and Others (2004): This case addressed gender equality and the right of African women to inherit under the African customary law of intestate succession.
- Shilubana and Others v Nwamitwa (2008): This case contributed to the development of customary law, bringing it in line with the constitutional commitment to gender equality. The appointment of a female chief by a customary institution, contrary to tradition, was deemed permissible.
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Frequently asked questions
The Southern African Legal Information Institute (SAFLII) publishes legal information for free public access, which primarily includes case law from South Africa. SAFLII also hosts legal materials from other countries in the region.
South African citation practice adds the abbreviated name of the court at the end, for example, (CC) for the Constitutional Court, (A) for the Appellate Division, and (SCA) for the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Online sources for case law in South Africa include Juta's South African Case Law, The South African Law Reports, Butterworths South African Constitutional Law Reports (SACLR), and Lexis+.
