More than 300 court judgments have been reported as officially late – the highest number since GroundUp started to report on the issue.
More than 300 court judgments are officially late – the highest number since GroundUp started to report on the issue when it was 87 in December 2018 and 103 in September 2019.
The latest report reflects the situation at the start of the third term – 15 August 2025 for the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Labour Appeal Court. And the start of the third term for the High Court, Labour Courts and Land Court – 21 July.
Judgment was reserved in 1,657 matters, of which 302 matters were outstanding for more than six months, classified as late by the Office of the Chief Justice (OCJ). This is up from 279 in term 2.
The Judicial Norms and Standards actually requires that every effort be made to hand down judgment within three months and that judgments generally not be reserved without a delivery date.
According to the latest list, the Gauteng Division of the Pretoria High Court had the highest number of late judgments, with 55 outstanding for longer than six months.
This was followed by the Johannesburg Labour Court with 51 late judgments and the Durban Labour Court with 31. The North West Division in Mahikeng and the KwaZulu-Natal Division in Pietermaritzburg followed with 24 and 22 respectively.
Some courts have no late judgments. These include the Electoral Court, Labour Appeal Court, Competition Appeal Court, and the Mpumalanga Local Division in Middelburg.
The country’s apex court is not setting the best example. According to the latest list, the Constitutional Court had the highest proportion of late judgments. Thirteen of 21 matters before the court were outstanding, one of which had been outstanding for more than a year.
Retired KwaZulu-Natal Judge Anton van Zyl had the longest outstanding judgment – more than four years late before a ruling was handed down in November 2025.
Acting Judge Sandile Kuboni has three late judgments. All have been outstanding since June and July 2021, making them the next longest outstanding matters.
Acting Judge MP Kumalo of the Johannesburg Labour Court had the highest number of late judgments, with 26 matters outstanding. This was followed by Judge Andrew Reddy of the North West Division in Mahikeng, with nine, and Acting Judge Mpontshana of the KwaZulu-Natal Division in Pietermaritzburg, with eight.
The OCJ’s latest report is itself late. It was only made public on 27 March 2026, almost six months after the end of the third court term (September 2025). Reports used to be published regularly at the end of each term.
The OCJ said it “endeavours to issue the Reserved Judgment Reports as soon as they are made available for publishing”. The information is “gathered manually” and undergoes “an extensive review process by the Judiciary before it may be published”.
The OCJ said the judiciary “accounts to the South African public through the Annual Judiciary Report”, released on Judiciary Day, which includes “statistics and analysis” on reserved judgments.
© 2026 GroundUp. This article is published under the GroundUp Republication Licence Version 1.0. Email [email protected] to request permission to republish.
Oliver Tambo served as the president of the African National Congress (ANC) from 1967 to 1991, advocating for anti-apartheid efforts.
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Top 10 favourite South African foods:
Biltong and Droewors: Before fridges were invented the indigenous tribes would preserve meat by dry curing. Biltong is a thinly sliced air-dried meat, usually made from beef or game such as springbok. Droewors are an air-dried sausage that’s traditionally eaten as a snack. Before being hung to dry the meat is cured using a mixture of vinegar, salt, sugar and spices such as pepper and coriander. They are highly prized by health enthusiasts because of their high protein and low fat content. Modern producers of these often add chilli or garlic and also use other meats such as wild boar and ostrich.
Cape Malay Curry: The Dutch and French landed and settled in Cape Town in the 17th century bringing with them slaves from India, Malaysia and Indonesia. They also brought with them their spices and traditional cooking methods. Using local produce this dish also uses aromatic spices such as saffron, cinnamon, turmeric and chilli to create a range of fragrant curries and stews.
Boerewors: This is a traditional South African sausage made from a mixture of beef with either pork or lamb and the addition of different spices. They are served in a coiled shape, much like a Cumberland sausage, and cooked on a barbecue (braai). The word for this delicacy comes from the Afrikaans and Dutch words boer for farmer and wors for sausage.
Malva pudding: This is an import brought by the Dutch. It’s a sweet and sticky baked sponge pudding made using apricot jam and smothered in a hot cream sauce. You can find it in many restaurants but is traditionally served at home for Sunday lunch.
Bunny chow: Not a dish made using rabbit as you might expect from the name. Instead it’s a popular Durban street food that is made using hollowed out loaves of bread, stuffed with spicy curry. Traditionally it was created by the immigrant Indian community in the Natal area of Durban. And served to workers for lunch.
Braai/Shisa nyama: This is an experience not to be missed and is more of a social event rather than just something to eat. Braai or shisa nyama originated in the townships of Johannesburg where butchers would set up barbecues in front of their shops at the weekend. They would grill their meat and sell it on the street. It has now become a community event with families gathering at braais at the weekend to share food, listen to music and socialise.
Amarula Don Pedro: This is a cocktail-come-dessert that uses a cream liqueur called Amarula. It is made from the marula fruit and then blended with ice cream.
Melktert: This is a dessert that’s very similar to a British custard tart. It consists of a pastry case filled with milk, eggs and sugar, that’s generally thickened with flour. Traditionally, the finished tart would be dusted with cinnamon.
Bobotie: This is a another dish thought to have been brought to South Africa by Asian settlers. It is now the national dish of the country and can be found in many restaurants as well as a favourite for serving up at home. It is a dish made by simmering minced meat with spices, usually curry powder, herbs and dried fruit. It is then topped with a mixture of egg and milk which is baked until set.
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