President Cyril Ramaphosa has assented to the Judicial Matters Amendment Act, 2023. The Judicial Matters Amendment Bills aim to amend numerous Acts which are administered by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development and are intended to address mostly practical and technical changes in various pieces of legislation.
Some of the notable amendments include amongst others:
• Amendments which provide for the powers, duties and functions of the Chief Master, some of which were not part of the legislation before. These changes will allow the Chief Master to play a greater supervisory role over the Masters of the High Court and will lead to improved service delivery to the public and to legal practitioners.
• A provision that allows the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, after due consultation, to determine certain categories of offences which, if the accused pays or has paid an admission of guilt fine, would not result in the accused receiving a criminal record.
Following the Minister’s determination, persons who already have received a criminal record for the identified categories of offences will have their offences expunged.
• A provision for the expungement of the criminal record of a person who paid an admission of guilt fine for violating the State of Disaster Regulations which were imposed during the COVID pandemic;
• A new mechanism to fight corruption, by creating an additional offence to be included in the Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004 (Act No. 12 of 2004) regarding the failure of members of the private sector or state-owned entities to prevent corrupt activities. This is in line with recommendations made by the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the Public Sector, including Organs of State (Zondo Commission).
• A provision that relates to when a person willfully makes a false declaration in support of an application for a protection order in terms of the Domestic Violence Act, 1998 (Act No. 116 of 1998). The new provision penalises the making of such a false declaration and such a person will have committed an offence. The amendment also enables applications for a protection order to be made without an affidavit.
• A repeals of common law relating to the crime of defamation. Various international and local stakeholders and interested parties have expressed concerns about the alarming effect of such offences on journalists and have advocated for their abolition. (The crime of crimen injuria and civil remedies for defamation however continue to be applicable.)
Whilst the amendments may appear to be minor and technical in nature, they will significantly improve service delivery and the efficiency and responsiveness of the justice system in the related matters.
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There was a postman who is always happy. in the other side there is harry who would just stares at the happy postman everyday and asks himself \”What\’s the secret of this man\”.
One day Harry decided to stop the postman and ask him why he\’s always smiling and happy, what he did.
the postman answered:\”Whenever I\’m handing a mail to a women I kisses her and I get more than just a kiss sometimes.\”
Harry liked the idea and went to a poste office and proposed for the job then he got it . In his first delivery Harry was so excited try the kissing thing out, and as he thought, there was a hot women in front of the first door, he went directly towared her and pasted her a kiss staight in the lips, in the middle of that her husband suddenly appeared in front him and asked:\”WTF ARE YOU DOING.\”
\”I\’m just delivering a \’kiss\’ was sent from China\” Harry answered in a sporadic tone.
\”Very nice, you came on time, I want to send a \’Fuck\’ with you to South Africa\” the husband responded while draging Harry into the house.
delirious supernova
A child can play with anything including his mother’s breast but not his father’s testicles.