Class notes
Concise notes on Civil Procedure 371
- Course
- Institution
Notes are complete as the lecturer dealt with the work , includes case and legislation discussions as it occurred in class.
[Show more]
Seller
Followzhawnehendricks
Reviews received
Content preview
LAW OF CIVILPROCEDURE 371
Study Notes 2017
,Intellectual Property of Chelsea Roux 1
Not for distribution or resale
, Topic 1: Introduction
1. Introduction
• Civil procedural law is that part of the adjective (procedural) law that regulates civil litigation.
o ∴ it is the mechanism by means of which rights derived from substantive law are enforced.
• Procedure is about the creation & enforcement of rights ∴ this subject deals with enforcement.
• RSA has an adversarial system
o Applies to both civil & criminal cases
o Opposing parties who “fight” a case while the court acts as an impartial referee.
§ Court doesn’t involve itself in the dispute or tell the parties how to run their respective cases
§ Parties must just obey the rules of the court.
• Civil procedure is part of civil law.
o To know what civil law is >> compare with criminal law
Civil Procedural Law Criminal Procedural Law
Civil action: Plaintiff vs. Defendant (institutes
action vs. defends)
State vs. Accused
Civil application: Applicant vs. Respondent
(brings application vs. opposes)
Nature: Private & aims to find out if the
Nature: Public & aims to find out if the
defendant/respondent is responsible for the
accused is guilty or not
plaintiff/applicant’s claim
Decision: defendant/respondent liable for
Decision: accused guilty of crime/offence?
plaintiff/ applicant’s claim?
Onus: Balance of probabilities
Onus: Beyond reasonable doubt
Punishment: damages or specific performance Punishment: fine, imprisonment or both
Aim of punishment: monetary compensation for Aim of punishment: retribution, deterrence,
loss suffered or to compel/prevent a party from rehabilitation…
doing something
• Note that both civil & criminal procedure are heavily influenced by the law of evidence.
o Main point of both these procedures is to place evidence before the court.
o Evidence ∴ dominates procedure
o Type of procedure used is determined by the way evidence must be presented in each case.
• Dominus litis = lord or master of proceedings
• Types of civil claims:
o Specific performance
o Damages
o Prohibitory interdict
o Ejection
o Sequestration
o Divorce
• Civil law is about the private person recovering what is due to him/her >> civil procedure = that part of civil law
which enables the person to go about doing that in practice.
Intellectual Property of Chelsea Roux 2
Not for distribution or resale
, 2. The court system and the officials
• Special courts
o Small Claims Court
o Labour Court
o Competition Appeal Court
o Tax Courts
o Land Claims Court
o Electoral Court
2.1 Magistrates’ Courts: District and Regional
• Creature of statute
o Created and function within the Magistrates’ Court Act
• 2 levels
o [1] District MC:
§ RSA ÷ into magisterial districts
§ Each served by MC
o [2] Regional MC
§ MC for regional divisions
• Remember:
o Single magisterial district may include more than 1 municipal area.
2.2 High Court
• HC system before constitutional dispensation
o Single 'Supreme Court of SA', divided into divisions
§ 6 ‘provincial’ divisions, 3 ‘local’ divisions, 1 ‘appellate’ division (highest court)
o Each provincial division exercised legal control over its own territorial area
o Appellate division provided the final decision in appeals from provincial divisions
o Each former ‘independent homeland’ (Ciskei, Transkei, Venda & Bophuthatswana) had own superior
court system
§ TBVC states
• HC system after constitutional dispensation
o Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) completely separate & outside HC system
o Constitutional Court (CC): highest court, final arbiter in constitutional matters
o 1 March 2009: HC’s names changed >> Renaming of High Courts Act 30 of 2008
o Superior Courts Act 10 of 2013
§ Provides that the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, after consultation with the
Judicial Service Commission, may establish one or more local seats for a division.
§ Local divisions have concurrent jurisdiction with the main seats of the respective divisions.
• But, have limited geographical areas
Intellectual Property of Chelsea Roux 3
Not for distribution or resale
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller zhawnehendricks. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $3.39. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
53068 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now