By Elsabe Steenhuisen.

In short, the answer is “yes”. The reasoning, with reference to case law, follows below.

1. What does the Common Law state?

The Common Law position is that children below the age of seven are infans and cannot act. A curator or a guardian has to act on behalf of the child. If children are over the age of seven, but under 18, they must be assisted either by a curator or their guardian. If the guardian is not available, the court must appoint a curator on motion proceedings.

2. Did the case law change this position?

Yes, by a gradual process, which is still developing. In 2000, in the Christian Education South Africa case, the court held that in a case concerning children, their “actual experiences and opinions would not necessarily have been decisive, but they would have enriched the dialogue, and the factual and experiential foundations for the balancing exercise in this difficult matter would have been more secure.”

In 2003 in the Soller case the court appointed a legal representative for the child, to whom the child gave instructions directly and without assistance of a guardian or curator ad litem.

In 2008 the court in the Pillay case remarked that the need for the child’s voice to be heard is perhaps even more acute when it concerns children mature for their age, who should be increasingly taking responsibility for their own actions and beliefs.

In 2009 the Legal Aid Board acted for a 12 year old girl. The court ruled that the Board did not need to obtain consent of either the court or the child’s guardian to represent a child. This was confirmed further in 2011 by the Supreme Court of Appeal when the Board acted in the Four Children case, and in 2012 in the Brossy case.

3. What does the legislation require?

The Child Justice Act merely requires “a parent/guardian/other suitable person” to assist child offenders who instruct their legal practitioners themselves. The Children’s Act allows representation of a child without a guardian. Some magistrates in the Children’s Courts require an application by the legal practitioner to allow the child to be represented. The Divorce Act allows the court to appoint a legal practitioner to represent a child at the proceedings and may order the parties or any one of them to pay the costs of the representation.

Section 28(1)(h) of the Bill of Rights provides that: “Every child has the right to have a legal practitioner assigned to the child by the state at state expense, in civil proceedings affecting the child, if substantial injustice would otherwise occur”. In the Van Niekerk case in 2005 the Centre for Child Law was allowed to apply ex parte for the appointment of a legal representative in terms of s28(1)(h) for two girls, without their guardian’s consent. ProBono.Org agrees with the Centre for Child Law that this section does not preclude registered legal organisations to secure legal representation for children. Section 28(1)(h) does not give the state exclusive rights in this respect.

In conclusion, if any person (who qualifies in terms of the means test) approaches ProBono.Org for assistance, we will obtain representation without the guardian’s permission, and if necessary the legal practitioner will obtain the court’s permission to act on behalf of the child, because we interpret the current state of the law as not to limit a child’s right to legal representation. We acknowledge Professor Ann Skelton of the Centre for Child Law, who dealt with this issue during a ProBono.Org breakfast on 18 October 2017, and thank her for the notes she made available for use by ProBono.Org. Full case references are available on request.

 

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