As Justice Mandisa Maya officially assumed her role as the country’s first female chief justice on Sunday, her toughest test in the first 100 days of her tenure will be leading the new Judicial Service Commission (JSC).
The body recently replaced several of its members, and will undertake the largest round of interviews since 2021, with over 51 candidates for 22 vacancies at courts around the country, including the judge president and several judge posts in the Western Cape High Court.
Justice Maya was appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa following consultation with the JSC and the leaders of political parties represented in the National Assembly.
She had been credited for transforming the Supreme Court of Appeal when she was that court’s judge president, closing the gender gap between male and woman judges, and being the first judge to write a judgment in both English and her mother language, isiXhosa.
Research and advocacy project Judges Matter said a lot of scrutiny will therefore fall on how the JSC navigates its core responsibilities of appointing judges and disciplining them for misconduct.
“Chief Justice Maya is an old hand at the JSC, having served as a member from 2017 to 2022, and having previously sat as chairperson of the JSC in Chief Justice Zondo’s absence, so we look to her to give the public confidence that the JSC takes these responsibilities seriously and will carry out its functions to the highest possible standards,” said Judges Matter researcher, Mbekezeli Benjamin.
“Judges Matter congratulates Justice Maya on the official start of her tenure as chief justice of South Africa. We celebrate this moment as a significant milestone in women’s progress through the legal profession and the judiciary.
We look forward to working with her on some of the challenges facing the judiciary. We will offer our support where we can, while still holding her accountable.
“While the South African judiciary remains strong and independent, there are some challenges facing the judiciary such as the general shortage of judges and magistrates across the country; the long delays in finalising cases and backlogs at various courts; and the question around court administration and the proper role of judges in directing the finances and administration of the judiciary. These are some of the pressing challenges facing the judiciary and need skilful leadership from the chief justice.
Justice Maya has a long track record of proven leadership in the judiciary, and we are confident that she will immediately get to work on these and other challenges,” Benjamin said.
Justice Maya practised as an advocate until her elevation to the bench in 1999.
She became the deputy president of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in 2015 and the president of the SCA in 2017.
She was the first woman to hold the positions of deputy president and president of the SCA. She is also the current vice-president of the International Association of Women Judges.
Some political parties have hailed her appointment, saying it was testament to the progress made as a young democracy committed to equality.
“We would encourage the chief justice to assert our Constitution and our constitutional order as instruments for progress, transformation and for eliminating suffering. Our Constitution is an instrument of social justice. Our Constitutional Court must assert this,” said GOOD Party secretary-general Brett Herron.
ActionSA parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said the start of Justice Maya’s tenure as the first female chief justice should serve as a turning point.
Cape Times