On behalf on the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Minister Jeff Radebe, President Jacob Zuma and the Executive, I would like to congratulate Judge Malesela Francis Legodi on his appointment to the office of the Chairperson of the Magistrates Commission and wish him well in stewardship of this important Institution.
I also wish to pledge the Justice Ministry and the Department’s unequivocal support to Judge Legodi and the Commission and will do all in our power to ensure that the Commission achieve its mandate as an advisory body to the Minister on matters pertinent to the Lower Court judiciary and the administration of Justice in general. We move into the future with much optimism and hope that the Commission will continue to play its meaningful role as a vehicle that leads the transformation of this important sphere of the judiciary. It is at Regional and District Courts where the majority of our people interface with the court system on a daily basis in search for justice.
We are grateful that Judge Legodi heeded the call to lead this Institution amid his busy schedule as Judge of the biggest and busiest High Court in the country. I am sure that the judge will be the first among the judiciary to rally behind our initiatives to establish independent High Courts in Limpopo and Mpumalanga as his added role in this Commission will further complicate his life with his routine circuit work in those remote provinces. Deducing from his profile and the brief encounter I have had with him shortly after his appointment, I am confident that the President would not have made any other better choice. Today’s agenda, which I am sure he had influenced its content, envision a firm commitment to a transformed judicial system of which the lower courts constitute a large component.
Judge Legodi has an impeccable track record that suit the leadership role of this Commission:
- He has came through the ranks – having started as a clerk of the court in 1981 and moved up to become an interpreter and prosecutor at the magistrate office in Thabamoopo in 1982.
- It is also significant that he served his articleship under Judge President Ngoepe at Ngoepe & Machaka in Polokwane during 1984 to 1987, who he later had to serve under his leadership as a Judge of North Gauteng High Court, but takes over the baton from him as the former Chairperson of this Commission. Judge Legodi also served as a para-legal and professional assistant at Phosa Mojapelo & Partners in Nelspruit.
- During 1987 to 1996 he practiced under a practised under a partnership firm of attorneys (Legodi, Khoza & Partners) in Bushbuckridge. From 1997 to 2004 he went solo – as a sole partner under Francis Legodi & Associates
- He reconnected with his old mentor, JP Ngoepe in 2000 to 2004 when he was appointed as an acting Judge in the then Transvaal Provincial Division and Venda High Court respectively.
- On 1 October 2004 he was appointed permanently as a Judge of the Pretoria High Court.
- In 1994 he was appointed as a mediator in Nelspruit in the first democratic election.
- Between 1995 to 1998 he served as a member and chairperson of the Mpumalanga Parks Board. During 1997 he was appointed as member and chairperson of the Ngobeni Commission that conducted investigation in the Mpumalanga legislature.
- Since 2005 to date he facilitated several judicial skills training sessions and also delivered a number of papers in the lower courts judiciary and to other bodies.
- He also served as Chairperson of the Military Appeal Court.
Judge Legodi came at a critical time in the transformation discourse. The Constitution Seventeenth Amendment Bill and the Superior Courts Bill will bring fundamental change in our court system and the regulatory framework of the judiciary. We will in the very near future deliberate on how the Magistrates Commission and the lower court judiciary will be affected by the proposed legislation.
We are confident that the Commission is in good hands and we look upon to the Chairperson for inspiration and insightful leadership.
I would also like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the Judge President Ngoepe for his sterling leadership. He has led the Institution for a considerable lengthy period of time and he leaves behind a rich legacy that will propel us forward. This session of the Commission, I am advised, is the 36th meeting of the Commission since its establishment in 1993, and Judge Legodi is only its third chairperson, this show some level of stability not experienced in the other in the other two Branches of State. Under his leadership the Commission has grown in leaps and bound and I am confidence that we will continue seek guidance from him.
I thank you.
Source: Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
