Africa-Press – South-Africa. A woman, who has been practising as an advocate for about 28 years, was recommended to be a judge in the Free State High Court after a successful interview on Thursday.
Advocate Ilse van Rhyn managed to convince the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) that she was the right person for the job.
Three people were vying for one vacancy at the Free State High Court.
In her interview, Van Rhyn told the commissioners that, during her acting judge stints, she “gained a tremendous amount of experience”.
She said:
The two other people interviewed on Thursday were advocate Josephus Johannes Francois Hefer SC and Cathy Louise Page.
Hefer, during his interview, told the JSC he had written about 40 judgments during his acting stints.
He also spoke about transformation, saying it was an “ongoing process which started many years ago and has gained momentum over the years”.
He said there had been a vast improvement in terms of transformation in the Free State.
Seasoned advocate vying for judge position vows to give back to community should he get the job
Asked if he had sufficient experience, as an acting judge, to enable him to deal with constitutional law cases, Hefer said he did, although the Free State High Court did not deal with many constitutional law cases.
Page said that being a judge was an “ultimate goal” for her.
She said she had been on the district court bench for 17 years.
Although there was an objection to her candidature, Page defended herself, saying her knowledge in other areas of the law was not limited.
She told the JSC that she had experience in civil matters – and it was “quite easy” for her to adjudicate different civil issues.
She added that, should she be appointed, she would be able to improve in other areas.
She said:
But a commissioner, Sesi Baloyi SC, asked whether it was fair for Page to acknowledge that she still has “room for growth” before being appointed a judge.
Responding, Page said learning was a journey, but that she had adequate experience to be a judge.
After deliberations, the JSC decided that it would advise President Cyril Ramaphosa to appoint Van Rhyn to the position.
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