In Search of Judicial Impact: A Consideration of Concepts and Methodologies

Abstract

The courts in South Africa have the potential to play an important role in securing the democratic and equal society that is envisaged in the Constitution. Armed with the Bill of Rights, their adjudication of disputes provides an opportunity for them to influence both policy and administrative decision-making. This is because although the courts usually exercise their powers in relation to individual disputes, the resulting judgments often have broader implications for administrative decision-making. Given that government in effect takes place through a myriad of individual decisions and administrative actions, if such judgments are implemented widely they can incrementally assist in steering the on-going transformation of the public administration and contribute to the evolving rights-based jurisprudence.