Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2021

Abstract

The appointment of female judges in South Africa is part of the transformative constitutional project. This chapter examines the question of gender equality, specifically the contribution of female judges to the transformation of the judiciary. It explores whether women judges have, in their judgments, conscripted and interpreted the constitution to highlight and guarantee its transformative potential and possibilities. I looked at the impacts of women judges on constitutional jurisprudence and how the influence of women judges has interacted with the broader transformation of the judicial and political system after apartheid. I conclude that the presence of women in the judiciary is not just symbolic but demonstrates a substantive commitment to ensuring that the judiciary has credibility and legitimacy among the population. The chapter points out, nonetheless, that once on the bench, women judges make a difference. Although limiting my examination to the female judges and jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court, South Africa’s apex court, I have pointed out that despite some overlap between the opinions of the female and male judges, the opinions of the female judges differ in some significant ways. This difference is located in the distinct way that female judges have framed the legal issues and analysis.

Comments

Chapter 10 in Gender, Judging and the Courts in Africa Selected Studies, Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group ; The World Bank, London, New York, 2021.

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