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Gauteng Judge President Dunstan Mlambo has proposed mandatory mediation for all civil matters. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp

Law Practice

Gauteng High Court proposes mandatory mediation for civil cases

Tania Broughton 1 day

Sassa presented its audit action plan to Parliament on Wednesday. Archive photo of people queueing for social grants in Eerste River in 2018. Photo: Ashraf Hendricks / GroundUp

Health & Welfare

Sassa explains why it paid grants to 75,000 dead people

Marecia Damons 2 days

Students sleeping outside Cape Town’s CPUT campus ‘failed to meet accommodation requirements’

Higher Education

Students sleeping outside Cape Town’s CPUT campus ‘failed to meet accommodation requirements’

Siyabonga Goni 20 Mar 2025

An architect’s impression of the proposed retirement complex at Sedgefield. Graphic: Eco Route Environmental Consultancy (Draft Amendment Report).

Land & Property Law

Developer sues Sedgefield environmentalist for R5m

John Yeld 19 Mar 2025

Armed gangs target five Cape Town schools, demand 10% of teachers’ salaries

Primary & Secondary Education

Armed gangs target five Cape Town schools, demand 10% of teachers’ salaries

Sandiso Phaliso 19 Mar 2025

New pilot project will help detainees who cannot afford bail. Illustration: Lisa Nelson / GroundUp

Human Rights Law

Coming soon: Fund to help people pay bail

18 Mar 2025

Image source: Harry Cunningham from

Environment & Natural Resources

South Africa’s penguins are worth billions, experts say

Michael Cherry 18 Mar 2025

The Katse Dam in the Lesotho Highlands, where SanLei Trout has its farm. Source: Sechaba Mokhethi

Agriculture

The “biggest trout farm in Africa” and the failed R5,000 community fund

17 Mar 2025

Source: Artist's rendition. The position and layout of Protea Village has been thoughtfully considered by the returning community, while the remainder of their land is divided between green belt, and the residential estate. Protea Village, situated on Erf 242, comprises 86 stands, each approximately 300m² in size.

Construction & Engineering

Construction of homes for Bishopscourt land claimants set to begin

Matthew Hirsch 13 Mar 2025

Conservationists argued that current no-fishing zones are inadequate to prevent the African Penguin’s extinction. Archive photo: John Yeld / GroundUp

Environment & Natural Resources

Settlement reached in African Penguin case

John Yeld 13 Mar 2025

Former Prasa acting CEO Mthuthuzeli Swartz (right) exits the Gqeberha Regional Court with his advocate, Mzwamadoda Mnyani. Photo: Steve Kretzmann / GroundUp

Criminal Law

Former Prasa acting CEO pleads not guilty to stealing railway line

12 Mar 2025

Learners from schools across Gauteng and the North West march to the Department of Basic Education’s head office in Pretoria on Thursday. Photos: Ihsaan Hendricks / GroundUp

Education

Cosas marches on education department and calls for minister to resign

Ihsaan Haffejee 10 Mar 2025

Retired KZN Judge Anton van Zyl will not face impeachment proceedings, but he will face an inquiry which can issue him with a warning or a fine. Illustration: Lisa Nelson / GroundUp

Law Practice

“Startling ruling” lets Judge Anton van Zyl escape impeachment for late judgments

Tania Broughton 5 Mar 2025

The deadline for the transition from the SASSA Gold Card to the Black Card is looming. Archive photo: Marecia Damons / GroundUp

Health & Welfare

About 1.9m people still need to swap gold cards as Sassa deadline looms

Marecia Damons 5 Mar 2025

Source: Matthew Hirsch. More than 100 Cape Town residents attended a meeting to discuss the proposed redevelopment of the Mowbray Golf Course Site.

Mixed-Use Property

Mixed reactions to affordable housing development on Mowbray Golf Course

Matthew Hirsch 28 Feb 2025

The Tafelberg school site in 2016. Archive photo: Masixole Feni / GroundUp

Land & Property Law

Concourt judgment on Tafelberg could change future of social housing

Daniel Steyn and Matthew Hirsch 28 Feb 2025

All infrastructure work on the R300m Botmaskop Fynbos Estate on the Helshoogte Pass between Stellenbosch and Franschhoek has already been completed. Photo from an appendix in the respondent’s court papers.

Property

Parties hold their breath in battle over R300m Stellenbosch mountain estate

John Yeld 26 Feb 2025

Workers at a household goods wholesaler in Johannesburg must be paid the minimum wage, not according to targets reached, the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration has ruled. Graphic: Lisa Nelson / GroundUp

Labour Law & Unions

Women workers win major victory on minimum wage

Tania Broughton 26 Feb 2025

Hundreds of students marched on the University of Cape Town campus last week protesting against financial exclusion. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks / GroundUp

Higher Education

UCT and SRC strike deal to help students with outstanding debt

Liezl Human 25 Feb 2025

Students protesting at the gates of eThekwini TVET College’s Centec campus in Morningside on Monday, demand an urgent solution to their accommodation crisis. Photo: Tsoanelo Sefoloko / GroundUp

Higher Education

Durban students protest housing crisis

Tsoanelo Sefoloko 25 Feb 2025

South Africa’s world-class scientific research vessel, the SA Agulhas II, heads toward Cape Town after a stop over in East London following its annual relief and supply voyage to the SANAE IV Antarctic base. The back of Table Mountain, seen in the distance here, was a welcome sight for some researchers returning from a 12-month overwintering stay at SANAE IV, along with sobering news on the state of the southern oceans. Photos: Steve Kretzmann / GroundUp

Climate Change

Icebreaker returns from Antarctica with alarming news

Steve Kretzmann 21 Feb 2025

Chaos outside Cape Town schools as parents demand places for their children

Primary & Secondary Education

Chaos outside Cape Town schools as parents demand places for their children

Vincent Lali 21 Feb 2025

Kenneth Shelembe from Mahlungulu near Nondweni in rural KwaZulu-Natal says he has been able to make a living wage as a waste picker. Photos: Bongane Motaung / GroundUp

Circular Economy & Waste Management

Waste management project is changing lives in rural KwaZulu-Natal

Bongane Motaung 20 Feb 2025

The Department of Justice says a decision on the Special Investigating Unit’s application to amend the 2020 Presidential Proclamation mandating it to investigate corruption involving the Lottery and its employees, is expected by the end of February. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks / GroundUp

Criminal Law

SIU applies to extend lottery corruption probe

Raymond Joseph 19 Feb 2025

Conservation groups want new “sweet spot” no-fishing zones around African Penguin breeding colonies, arguing current zones are inadequate to prevent the species’ extinction. Archive photo: John Yeld / GroundUp

Environment & Natural Resources

Major showdown in court over African Penguin’s future

John Yeld 17 Feb 2025

Students disrupt classes amid housing crisis

Higher Education

Students disrupt classes amid housing crisis

Sandiso Phaliso and Joseph Chirume 12 Feb 2025

Northern Cape learners can’t go to class because schools have no money

Primary & Secondary Education

Northern Cape learners can’t go to class because schools have no money

11 Feb 2025

Beaches along the West Coast were soiled with oil spilling from the wreck of the MV Ultra Galaxy which ran aground in July 2024. Photo: Annalize Barnard / GroundUp

Circular Economy & Waste Management

Wreck of MV Ultra Galaxy confirmed as source of West Coast oil spill

John Yeld 10 Feb 2025

CPUT students protest against their “dire” accommodation

Higher Education

CPUT students protest against their “dire” accommodation

Marecia Damons 10 Feb 2025

Explainer: BELA and its controversies

Primary & Secondary Education

Explainer: BELA and its controversies

Paula Ensor 5 Feb 2025

A drone image of oil at the main beach in Strandfontein on the West Coast. Photo: Tania Fouche / GroundUp

Environment & Natural Resources

West Coast beaches polluted by oil spill

John Yeld 3 Feb 2025

Western Cape schools feel the squeeze after cuts in teacher posts

Primary & Secondary Education

Western Cape schools feel the squeeze after cuts in teacher posts

31 Jan 2025

Media

Press ombud rules on News24’s coverage of Gayton McKenzie’s Olympic jaunt

Ombud Watcher Law 29 Jan 2025

Regulations limiting the access to the R370-a-month Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant have been found to be unconstitutional and invalid by the High Court in Pretoria on Thursday. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks / GroundUp

Health & Welfare

Explosive court ruling on SRD grant

Marecia Damons 24 Jan 2025

In the 2000s activists across the world campaigned for antiretroviral treatment to be made available to people with HIV. One of the consequences of this was PEPFAR, the United States government’s foreign aid HIV programme. Since 2003 it has saved millions of lives. But now its future is unclear. Photo from the Treatment Action Campaign’s march for HIV treatment in Cape Town on 14 February 2003. (photographer unknown)

CSI & Philanthropy

Trump’s sudden suspension of foreign aid puts millions of lives in Africa at risk

Liezl Human 23 Jan 2025

The South African Social Security Agency is to suspend payment of Social Relief of Distress grants where fraud is suspected. Archive photo: Barbara Maregele / GroundUp

Health & Welfare

Sassa to suspend SRD grants where fraud is suspected

Marecia Damons 22 Jan 2025

A company called Edumarks has been asking for R100 to send learners their matric results in advance of the official release. On Thursday, the person running Edumarks was arrested. Archive Photo: Tariro Washinyira / GroundUp

Criminal Law

21-year-old arrested in matric marks leak

Kirav Doolabh and Veer Gosai 17 Jan 2025

Judge Nana Makhubele could face impeachment after a Judicial Conduct Tribunal found her guilty of misconduct. Archive photo: Masego Mafata/GroundUp

Law Practice

Judge Makhubele guilty of gross misconduct

Tania Broughton 13 Jan 2025

“Of the nine cases referred to and cited, only two could be found to exist, albeit that the citation of one was incorrect,” wrote Judge Elsja-Marie Bezuidenhout about an application for leave to appeal. Illustration: Lisa Nelson

Law Practice

Lawyers in deep trouble for using AI to draft court papers

Tania Broughton 9 Jan 2025

Criminal Law

How the SRD grant system has been defrauded

Nathan Geffen 2 Jan 2025

Mr Sweet workers picketed outside the Department of Labour’s office in Germiston during their 11-week strike. Archive photo: Kimberly Mutandiro / GroundUp

Labour Law & Unions

Mister Sweet workers face disciplinary hearings for strike

Kimberly Mutandiro 20 Dec 2024

Eight months after publishing its last report, the Office of the Chief Justice has finally released the new list of reserved judgments. The High Court in Pretoria had the highest number of late judgments, with 59 matters outstanding for longer than six months. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks / GroundUp

Law Practice

Hundreds of court judgments are late

Marecia Damons 19 Dec 2024

Blind and visually impaired people have the right to convert protected works to accessible formats without having to obtain permission, the Constitutional Court has ruled. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp

IP Law

Blind people can access copyrighted works, rules Concourt - again

Tania Broughton 17 Dec 2024

African Penguins (photographed above at the Boulders penguin colony) are critically endangered. Photo: John Yeld/GroundUp

Environment & Natural Resources

Legal delays threaten survival of African Penguins, say conservation groups

John Yeld 12 Dec 2024

Adam Harrower from the South African National Botanical Institute and Karel du Toit who was head of the SAPS Springbok Stock Theft and Endangered Species Unit appear in the dock at the regional court in Springbok on Tuesday. Photo: Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp

Environment & Natural Resources

Plant poaching fraud case to be heard in March

Liezl Human 5 Dec 2024

People waiting in long lines outside the VFS Global office in Cape Town on Thursday. On Friday morning, Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber extended the validity of the original Zimbabwe Exemption Permit to November 2025. Photo: Matthew Hirsch / GroundUp

Immigration & Citizenship Law

Last minute reprieve for Zimbabwe Exemption Permit holders

Matthew Hirsch and Joseph Chirume 29 Nov 2024

Protest at Cape Town primary school over vacant teaching posts

Primary & Secondary Education

Protest at Cape Town primary school over vacant teaching posts

Sandiso Phaliso 27 Nov 2024

Four years after the landmark Concourt Mahalangu ruling, domestic workers are still unable to access compensation. Archive photo: Bernard Chiguvare / GroundUp

Labour Law & Unions

Union criticises employers for not registering domestic workers with UIF. But it’s not so simple

Kimberly Mutandiro and GroundUp Staff 26 Nov 2024

Early childhood development groups picket for increased funding

Early Childhood Development

Early childhood development groups picket for increased funding

Silver Sibiya 21 Nov 2024

A protest organised by the Simunye Workers Forum in 2021. The Labour Appeal Court is to hear an appeal against a ruling that the forum be registered as a trade union. Archive photo: Kimberly Mutandiro / GroundUp

Labour Law

Crucial court battle over future of “new” trade unions

Tania Broughton 21 Nov 2024