Women's Legal Centre Trust v President (2022) explained

Court:	Constitutional Court of South Africa
Full Name:	Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others
Citations:	ZACC . 2022 . 23. 2022 (5) SA 323 (CC); 2023 (1) BCLR 80 (CC)
Judges:	Madlanga J, Majiedt J, Mhlantla J, Theron J, Tshiqi J, Madondo AJ, Pillay AJ and Tlaletsi AJ
Number Of Judges:	8
Decision By:	Tlaletsi AJ (unanimous)
Related Actions:	Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others 2009. ZACC. 20.
Prior Actions:	President of the Republic of South Africa and Another v Women's Legal Centre Trust and Others; Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development v Faro and Others; Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development v Esau and Others 2020. ZASCA. 177. in the Supreme Court of Appeal Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others; Faro v Bignham N.O. and Others; Esau v Esau and Others 2018. ZAWCHC. 109. in the High Court of South Africa, Western Cape Division
Italic Title:	yes
Docket:	CCT 24/21

Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others is a 2022 decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa concerning the legal status and regulation of Muslim marriages. The Constitutional Court declared that the Marriage Act, 1961 and Divorce Act, 1979 were unconstitutional insofar as they failed to recognise and regulate marriages solemnised in accordance with sharia and not registered as civil marriages.^[1] This failure was inconsistent with various constitutional rights in sections 9, 10, 28 and 34 of the Constitution of South Africa. The judgment was unanimous and was written by Acting Justice Pule Tlaletsi.^{[2] [3]}

The case originated in the Western Cape High Court, where it was decided by Judge Nolwazi Mabindla-Boqwana.^{[4] [5]}

See also

• South African family law
• Constitutional litigation in South Africa
• Section Nine of the Constitution of South Africa

Notes and References

1. Abduroaf . Muneer . Moosa . Najma . 2023-10-31 . A Brief Analysis of the Judgment in Women's Legal Centre Trust v President of the Republic of South Africa 2022 5 SA 323 (CC) . Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal . 26 . 10.17159/1727-3781/2023/v26i0a14595 . 1727-3781. free .
2. Web site: Broughton . Tania . 2022-06-29 . Marriages under Islamic law given legal status . 2024-02-07 . GroundUp News . en.
3. Web site: Chabalala . Jeanette . 28 June 2022 . ConCourt confirms order recognising Muslim marriages . 2024-02-07 . News24 . en-US.
4. Web site: Abduroaf . Muneer . 2020-06-30 . Analysis of the Women’s Legal Centre Trust case . 2024-02-07 . De Rebus . en-US.
5. Amien . Waheeda . 2020 . Judicial Intervention in Facilitating Legal Recognition (and Regulation) of Muslim Family Law in Muslim-Minority Countries: The Case of South Africa . Journal of Islamic Law . 1 . 65 . 10.53484/JIL.V1.AMIEN . free.