Judge ordered to apologise for late judgment
The Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC) has ordered KZN High Court Judge Elsje-Marie Bezuidenhout to apologise in writing after finding that she committed a grossly negligent breach of the Code of Judicial Conduct by taking nearly a year to provide reasons in a matter that was before her on an urgent basis.
The complaints stemmed from urgent applications arising from a leadership dispute at Umvoti Municipality, reports News24.
On 24 June 2024, Bezuidenhout discharged a rule nisi granted by another judge and indicated that her written reasons would follow. Those reasons were only delivered on 19 June 2025, almost 12 months later.
The complainants’ legal representatives repeatedly sought the outstanding reasons in July 2024. They were informed through the registrar that the judge was overseas and that the reasons would be delivered ‘in due course’.
The ruling, handed down by a committee chaired by Deputy Chief Justice Dunstan Mlambo, partially upheld complaints lodged by Philani Godfrey Mavundla and Mfundo Masondo. After reviewing the court transcript, the JCC found that Bezuidenhout had questioned counsel firmly and, at times, interrupted their arguments.
However, it concluded that this did not establish bias, personal spite, or any ulterior motive.
‘At most, it shows robust judicial engagement in urgent and contentious proceedings,’ Mlambo said.
The Sunday Tribune reports that he explained that a judge may be firm during proceedings, ask difficult questions, and may require counsel to address perceived weaknesses in a case.
The committee found that while the delay amounted to judicial misconduct, other allegations against the judge, including claims of bias, intimidation of legal representatives and procedural unfairness, were not substantiated. Bezuidenhout did not dispute the delay.
In her response to the committee, she cited the complexity of the litigation, related proceedings, public scrutiny arising from another judgment, and significant health challenges, including chronic pain caused by arthritis and an overuse injury that required shoulder and elbow surgery in March this year.
She expressed regret for the delay and denied all other allegations of misconduct, according to News24. While accepting that the judge’s health problems and workload were genuine mitigating factors, the committee found they did not excuse the prolonged delay.
It concluded that the delay constituted a grossly negligent breach of the Code of Judicial Conduct but was not wilful.
As a sanction, the committee ordered Bezuidenhout to submit a written apology to the complainants within 30 days. The ruling stops short of referring the matter to a Judicial Conduct Tribunal, the most serious disciplinary process available against a judge.
Mbekezeli Benjamin, research and advocacy officer at Judges Matter, said a finding of a ‘grossly negligent breach’ amounted to serious misconduct but was not of a nature that could lead to impeachment.
‘A written apology is a relatively serious sanction in the context of the Judicial Service Commission Act and is commonly imposed where there are wilful or grossly negligent breaches of the code,’ he said.
Benjamin warned that delayed judgments continue to undermine confidence in the justice system.
News24 reports that he said four judges are facing Judicial Conduct Tribunal proceedings over delayed judgments, highlighting the seriousness with which such complaints are now treated.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
