In an important judgment, the Constitutional Court emphasises that fundamental rights are primarily meant to protect human beings against the state. All the rights contained in our Bill of Rights are very much fundamental rights, including the right to just administrative action enshrined in section 33.
South Africa’s administrative law benefits natural and juristic private
Where a court is asked to set aside legislation on the grounds that it breaches the principle of legality because the law is not rationally connected to the legitimate government purpose for which it is passed, the threshold is low. The connection must not be arbitrary but the law can be based on a reason
The function of public servants and government officials at national, provincial and municipal levels is to serve the public.
The community at large has the right to insist upon them acting lawfully and within the bounds of their authority.
Where they are involved in court cases involving the legality of their actions, such as in
The South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO) wanted the appeal court to uphold a lower court’s order directing the municipalities to repair and replace water pipes and faulty water mains within 12 months and to charge each consumer R70 per month and R50 per month respectively pending the repairs or replacement. A court cannot grant