Legal Articles and Guides
Schoolboy’s expulsion set aside
The Eastern Cape High Court (Makhanda) has set aside the expulsion of a Grade 11 St Andrew’s College pupil who ‘lashed’ a fellow pupil with a broken golf putter so harshly on his buttocks that it caused blood blisters.
Matric dance excluded no-one on race grounds
An investigation into a matric farewell event organised for Brackenfell High School pupils has concluded that it was a private function and did not exclude anyone on the basis of race, notes a TimesLIVE report.
Expelled Rhodes student granted leave to appeal
Expelled Rhodes University student Yolanda Dyantyi has been granted leave to take her fight against her permanent exclusion all the way to the SCA.
EFF intervenes in student's failed bid to review life ban
The EFF made a call for intervention, to bring Rhodes University ‘to its senses’, in response to former student Yolanda Dyantyi being banned from the university for life, for a range of charges – including kidnapping, assault, defamation and insubordination.
Now Cosas wants to close private schools
The Congress of SA Students (Cosas) has threatened to shut down all private schools that remain open during the four-week Covid-19 break for public schools, arguing that having them open while public schools are closed is not fair.
Schools shutdown to 'pacify' unions to be tested
The government will be taken to court after accusations that it pacified unions by deciding to close all public schools for four weeks, less than a month after it won a legal challenge to its decision to reopen the country’s economy along with its schools.
Cabinet still mulling possible school shut-down
Six weeks after schools reopened, the Cabinet is again debating whether schools should remain open or close again ahead of the anticipated Covid-19 peak. Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga met with the Cabinet yesterday to discuss proposals made by stakeholders in the education sector about schooling ahead of the peak.
School barred from excluding children over fees
A Durban school can no longer suspend pupils from virtual classes for defaulting on school fees. A consent order granted by the Durban High Court ordered the Durban North Primary School to refrain from contravening the Schools Act by excluding pupils from online lessons because their fees were in arrears.
SCA dismisses bid to strip principal’s powers
The school governing body (SGB) of Bloemfontein’s Grey College has been dealt a blow by the SCA, the latest instalment in its protracted power struggle with principal Deon Scheepers.
Why SCA disallowed ditching of Afrilkaans
The constitutional injunction that South Africans have the right to education in the language of their choice ‘where that education is reasonably practicable’, is what made the difference between this week’s SCA ruling that the removal of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction at Unisa was unlawful and unconstitutional and previous rulings allowing the universities of Stellenbosch and the Free State to switch to tuition in English.
Pridwin rulings important, but not precedent setting
Last week’s Constitutional Court judgment in the Pridwin Preparatory School case took some 13 months to deliver. ‘When judgment day did finally arrive, what was handed down were two voluminous, and important judgments,’ says the anonymous legal expert, ‘Professor Balthazar’.
'Not unreasonable' to reopen schools, says state
Government lawyers insist that the state’s decision to ease lockdown restrictions and reopen schools, at a time when SA’s Covid-19 infection rates are increasing, is not unreasonable – particularly given the economic crisis the country is facing, notes Business Day.
ConCourt finds for children in parents' clash with school
The Constitutional Court has ruled that private (or independent) schools may no longer rely on contracts with parents as the basis for kicking children out of school without a fair hearing, notes a GroundUp report.
Independent schools' contract ruling today
The Constitutional Court will rule today on the obligations and duties of independent schools, says a report on the IoL site.
Lawyer threatens universities with legal action
Attorney Comfort Ngidi is threatening legal action against KZN’s three top universities if lectures do not resume soon under alert level three, says a News24 report.