Judgment finally delivered after 12 years

South African retired Judge Anton Van Zyl has handed down a judgment in a case more than 12 years after it was reserved. The matter was reserved in the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) High Court (Pietermaritzburg) on 12 December 2012. A GroundUp report says it was the longest outstanding judgment across all SA courts. According to the judicial norms and standards gazette in 2014, every effort must be made to hand down judgments no later than three months after the last hearing. The case concerned an application brought by Allan Gray about its interest in the disposal of shares by Casinos Austria International in Gold Reef Resorts, in the KZN Province. The respondents in the matter were the KZN Gambling Board and its chairperson, the KZN Government, Akani Msunduzi, Casinos Austria and Gold Reef Resorts. The case focused on whether this disposal of shares required the consent of the KZN Gambling Board under section 50 of the KZN Gambling Act. On Friday last week, Van Zyl finally ruled in favour of the respondents, finding that the disposal of shares did require the consent of the KZN Gambling Board under the KZN Gambling Act. Allan Gray’s application was dismissed. No costs were awarded.

Van Zyl retired in August 2021 with eight outstanding judgments, including the Allan Gray matter. This according to the last available Reserved Judgment Reports for the Chief Justice. Van Zyl also has another late judgment which was reserved on 4 June 2013. GroundUp previously reported that the Supreme Court of Appeal sharply rebuked Van Zyl over a delayed judgment. He took four years to rule in favour of a company for damages after a strike. In 2023, Van Zyl was reported to the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC) for failing to deliver multiple judgments. In July 2024, the JCC ruled that it cannot pursue impeachment proceedings against Van Zyl – despite his failure to deliver several judgments – because he is no longer in office. This decision meant Van Zyl retained full judicial benefits, including a lifelong salary. The JCC did, however, direct that the matter be dealt with ‘urgently’ in terms of section 17 (3) of the Judicial Services Commission Act, which deals with ‘serious but non impeachable complaints’.