This book introduces students to the distinct legal traditions that make up the South African legal system.

Brutally dragged 780 metres beneath a taxi – a young woman’s inspiring story of survival, courage, and the will to live.

13 September 2011. The story would shock thousands and be remembered by many for years to come. It would be plastered all over the papers and continue to attract interest well after the shock factor of what happened had passed. Reports and articles would be written, and “facts”, as given to reporters by some of those involved and willing to be interviewed, would be recounted and repeated in all forms of public media over the months and even years that followed. And although these versions would generate widespread outrage, none was entirely accurate.

"The stories were about me. I was there. I am Kim McCusker - the girl who was dragged by a taxi. This, as I experienced it, is the true version of events."

The fourth edition of Principles of Evidence strikes a balance between the theory of the law of evidence and its practical application. This edition continues to assess the impact of the Constitution on the traditional Anglo-South African law of evidence, especially with regards to the admissibility of unconstitutionally obtained evidence. It further discusses the statutory provisions regulating diverse matters such as sexual history evidence and the admissibility of electronic evidence.

This book includes a practical analysis of statutes that impact on civil procedure and relevant case law. A set of precedents can be downloaded in electronic format.

This publication was developed to provide undergraduate law students and newly qualified practitioners with an easy to follow guide through the intricacies of South African civil procedure in the High Court and the Magistrates' Courts. Procedures are logically set out chapter by chapter for ease of reference and understanding.

Complex procedures are set out in diagrams throughout the text and an annexure contains additional procedures and basic precedents.

Precedents for Applications in Civil Proceedings has been written to assist all, from aspirant novices to experienced practitioners.

The book contains more than 100 examples covering an extensive range of more than 50 subjects, with commentary on the requirements of applications and the identification of typical defences.

Precedents for Applications in Civil Proceedings comprises four parts: Part 1 - Introduction and General Guidelines: advice on drafting with emphasis on application papers; Part 2 - Generic Applications and General Matters: generic applications such as interdicts, reviews, appellate applications and the like; Part 3 - Procedural, Interlocutory and Incidental Applications Matters: An extensive range of interlocutory, incidental and procedural applications; Part 4 - Specific Substantive Applications: Comprising a wide range of subjects with commentary and precedents thereon.

The new edition deals with the new legislation affecting the law of damages, including the Road Accident Fund Amendment Act 19 of 2005, the National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008. A large number of important Constitutional Court, Supreme Court of Appeal and High Court judgments and academic contributions since 2003 relating to most fields of the law of damages in both delict and contract are examined in the new editions.

Students will find this book invaluable in their study of Criminal Procedure. It introduces readers to the fundamental principles and values underlying this field of law and guides them systematically through the rules of procedure that apply in criminal cases.

Eric Morris’ Technique in Litigation has been of inestimable value to fledgling advocates and attorneys for four decades. The book is concerned with litigation in both the High Courts and the magistrates’ courts, and provides useful, practical guidance on all aspects of litigation.

The sixth edition of Technique in Litigation has been substantially revised and updated, resulting in a book that still captures Morris’ humour and timeless wisdom, while at the same time being thoroughly topical and practical for the modern lawyer seeking to become a courtroom specialist.

The book will be of value not only to young practitioners still learning the technique of litigation, but also to more experienced practitioners to verify and enhance their courtroom techniques.

The law of evidence is vital to each legal practitioner and forms part of the curriculum of every South African law qualification. It is compulsory even for some degrees not strictly confined to legal practice, such as certain police and related qualifications. However, the law of evidence is not considered an easy subject, especially not for persons who have never been inside a court of law.

In this work, academics with practical experience of the criminal justice system have selected a number of decided cases as well as statutes relevant to the law of evidence. Illuminating commentary is provided, which should assist any student of the discipline to get to the core of these texts. Due attention has also been paid to the constitutional aspects of the law of evidence.

Die bewysreg is onmisbaar vir elke regspraktisyn en maak deel uit van die leerplan van elke Suid-Afrikaanse regskwalifikasie. Dit is selfs verpligtend vir sommige grade wat nié tot die regspraktyk beperk is nie, soos sekere polisie en verbandhoudende kwalifikasies. Tog word bewysreg as ’n moeilike vak beskou, veral vir diegene wat nog nooit in ’n geregshof was nie.

In hierdie boek het akademici met praktiese ervaring van die strafregstelsel ’n aantal besliste hofsake sowel as wetgewing van toepassing op die bewysreg uitgesoek. Die insiggewende kommentaar wat voorsien word, behoort enige student van bewysreg tot die kern van die tekste te help deurdring. Behoorlike aandag word ook geskenk aan die grondwetlike aspekte van die bewysreg.

Evidential Aspects of Law Enforcement will assist law enforcement officers with gaining a clear understanding of the legal principles involved in the gathering of evidence, whether on crime scenes or during further investigations.

A successful prosecution depends on the value of the evidence gathered from the moment that the crime was reported. Evidential Aspects of Law Enforcement addresses the law of evidence and aspects of the law of criminal procedure that relate to the law of evidence. The book also explains the importance of effecting an arrest to facilitate the gathering of evidence from a suspect (such as fingerprints and DNA), and how the conduct of the enforcement officer may affect investigations.

Evidential Aspects of Law Enforcement explains technical legal terms in a straightforward and practical way, and contains the information that all law enforcement officers require to perform their duties effectively.

The South African Law of Evidence is the authoritative and comprehensive guide to the law of evidence in South Africa, combining the received wisdom of the past with the imperatives of the 1996 Constitution, and includes more in-depth discussion of such topics as hearsay, admissions and confessions, and privilege.

Constitutional jurisprudence and extensive use of comparative international case-law and literature broaden your understanding of the theory underpinning the nature and problem of proof plus this 3rd edition is more up-to-date and comprehensive.

This book provides candidate attorneys with the practical information that they need when starting articles.

The information in this guide bridges the gap between the university environment, where the emphasis is on theoretical knowledge, and the candidate attorney’s new working environment, where the emphasis is on the practical, hands-on application of this knowledge and learning fast! It covers the candidate attorney’s relationship with his or her principal, with counsel and clients, registering and ceding articles, issuing, serving and filing, the courts, how to prepare for applications and actions, being admitted as an attorney, ethics and etiquette.

Features and Benefits

• A practical handbook intended for the new candidate attorney covering everything from working with principals, counsel and clients, to etiquette, actions and applications
• Plain language approach

The bestselling title in the Oxford Quick Reference series, A Dictionary of Law is an essential reference work, described by leading university lecturers as 'the best law dictionary' and favoured by law students and legal professionals alike. The tenth edition features over 4,900 clear and concise definitions on major terms, concepts, and processes within the English legal system, and is a useful source of information for any of the many countries that base their legal system on English law. It includes more than 120 new entries, including acid attacks, lasers, Nightingale Courts, Northern Ireland Protocol, and retained EU Law. Many of the new and revised entries reflect changes brought about by Brexit and the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Act 2020. There have also been significant increases of coverage in the areas of constitutional law, medical law, and employment law and professional regulation. Updated web links complement the text and lead to a dedicated companion website for further reading materials. The dictionary also contains a guide to legal writing, and a citation guide drawn from the Oxford Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA).

The 2nd edition of Criminal Procedure Workbook is designed as an aid in the study of criminal procedure and should be used in conjunction with the prescribed textbook. It is easy to use and facilitates learning through practical, real life scenarios. In particular, it hones in on the areas where students need assistance when preparing for tests and exams.

The practical and straightforward solutions will give students a better understanding of the subject as well as enable them to improve their results.

English
The second edition of this bilingual Criminal Procedure Casebook provides the reader with excerpts of judgments that illustrate the most important aspects and underlying principles of South African criminal procedure. It also contains a section on international and transnational criminal matters. This edition includes new topics such as the accused’s capacity to understand proceedings (mental illness and criminal matters), undue delays in criminal matters and child justice.

A summary of the facts and important issues precedes each case excerpt. The excerpts are followed by a critical note evaluating and explaining the relevance and importance of the judgment. The method employed by the authors in their selection of cases reflects a principled approach to the subject. All introductory and explanatory notes are in English and Afrikaans, and Afrikaans judgments are followed by an English translation.

This book will be of invaluable assistance in the study of the dynamic field of criminal procedure. It can be used as a companion to the Criminal Procedure Handbook twelfth ed by Joubert (editor) et al.

Afrikaans
Die tweede uitgawe van die Strafprosesreg Vonnisbundel verskaf aan die gebruiker uittreksels uit hofbeslissings wat die belangrikste aspekte van en beginsels onderliggend aan die Suid-Afrikaanse strafprosesreg illustreer. Dit bevat ook ‘n afdeling wat internasionale en transnasionale strafregtelike aangeleenthede aanraak. Hierdie tweede uitgawe bevat nuwe onderwerpe wat insluit: die beskuldigde se vermoë om verrigtinge te begryp (geestesongesteldheid en strafregtelike toerekenbaarheid), onbehoorlike vertragings in strafregtelike verrigtinge en kinderstrafproses.

Elke uittreksel word voorafgegaan deur ‘n opsomming (in Engels en Afrikaans) van die feite en belangrike kwessies. Die uittreksels word gevolg deur ‘n kritiese aantekening (weereens in Engels en Afrikaans) waarin die belang van die uitspraak oorweeg en verduidelik word. Uitsprake in Afrikaans word gevolg deur ‘n Engelse vertaling. Die skrywers se keuse van uitsprake weerspieël ‘n beginselmatige benadering tot die onderwerp.

Die boek sal nuttig wees by die bestudering van die dinamiese gebied van die strafprosesreg. Dit kan saam met die Strafprosesreghandboek twaalfde uitgawe deur Joubert (redakteur) et al gebruik word.

In 2005, Fred van der Vyver, a young actuary and the son of a wealthy Eastern Cape farming family, was charged with murdering his girlfriend, Inge Lotz, allegedly bludgeoning her to death with a hammer as she lay on a couch in her lounge. The case against Van der Vyver seemed overwhelming. His behaviour at the time of the murder appeared suspicious and the forensic evidence seemed to prove his guilt.

And yet, in one of the most sensational and controversial murder trials in South African legal history, Van der Vyver's lawyers sought to turn the table on the police, accusing them of fabricating evidence and lying to the judge.

Now updated with the tale of the remarkable events that followed the judge’s verdict, prize-winning author Antony Altbeker takes you into the heart of the epic courtroom battle. His eye-witness account of the trial presents the reader with all the evidence and testimony while also placing it in the context of a society and justice system that are being stretched to breaking point.

Since 1994, Antony Altbeker has worked on issues relating to crime, policing and the criminal justice in government and in a variety of think-tanks. He is also the author of A Country at War with Itself and The Dirty Work of Democracy.

Crime scene investigation is a practical book dealing with the management, investigation, and control and processing of crime scenes, or scenes of incident, as they are now called. The book explains the important principles of continuity of possession and the importance of preventing contamination of the scene and evidence. It also focuses on the roles of experts and aids who can help investigating officers to solve complex and varied crimes. The book pays particular attention to the administrative process involved in the handling of evidence. This includes: The responsibilities of the investigating officer who has to deal with the incident; The various ways in which a scene of incident can be documented; The handling of people who may be present at the scene; The proper identification, collection, packaging and dispatch of evidence. Two of the unique features of the book is the introduction and explanation of a new investigation principle, namely the Lochner principle, and a new search method, namely the Lochner/Zinn search method.

International Law in the U.S. Legal System provides a wide-ranging overview of how international law intersects with the domestic legal system of the United States, and points out various unresolved issues and areas of controversy. Curtis Bradley explains the structure of the U.S. legal system and the various separation of powers and federalism considerations implicated by this structure, especially as these considerations relate to the conduct of foreign affairs. Against this backdrop, he covers all of the principal forms of international law: treaties, executive agreements, decisions and orders of international institutions, customary international law, and jus cogens norms. He also explores a number of issues that are implicated by the intersection of U.S. law and international law, such as treaty withdrawal, foreign sovereign immunity, international human rights litigation, war powers, extradition, and extraterritoriality. This book highlights recent decisions and events relating to the topic, including various actions taken during the Trump administration, while also taking into account relevant historical materials, including materials relating to the U.S. Constitutional founding. Written by one of the most cited international law scholars in the United States, the book is a resource for lawyers, law students, legal scholars, and judges from around the world.

A Restatement of the English Law of Unjust Enrichment represents a wholly novel idea within English law. Designed to enhance understanding of the common law the Restatement comprises a set of clear succinct rules, fully explained by a supporting commentary, that sets out the law in England and Wales on unjust enrichment. Written by one of the leading authorities in the area, in collaboration with a group of senior judges, academics, and legal practitioners, the Restatement offers a powerfully persuasive statement of the law in this newly recognized and uncertain branch of English law. Many lawyers and students find unjust enrichment a particularly difficult area to master. Combining archaic terminology with an historic failure to provide a clear conceptual structure, the law remained obscure until its recent rapid development in the hands of pioneering judges and academics. The Restatement builds on the clarifications that have emerged in the case law and academic literature to present the best interpretation of the current state of the law. The Restatement will be accessible to, and of great practical benefit to, students, academics, judges, and lawyers alike as they work with this area of law. The text of the Restatement is supported by full commentary explaining its provisions and roots together with its application to real and hypothetical cases. The Restatement appears as European private law takes its first steps towards harmonization. In providing an accessible survey of the English law, the Restatement will offer an important reference point for the English position on unjust enrichment in the harmonization debates. Also appearing shortly after the United States Third Restatement on Restitution and Unjust Enrichment, this Restatement offers an interesting contrast with American law in this area.

Improving access to justice has been an ongoing process, and on-demand justice should be a natural part of our increasingly on-demand society. What can we do for example when Facebook blocks our account, we're harassed on Twitter, discover that our credit report contains errors, or receive a negative review on Airbnb? How do we effectively resolve these and other such issues? Digital Justice introduces the reader to new technological tools to resolve and prevent disputes bringing dispute resolution to cyberspace, where those who would never look to a court for assistance can find help for instance via a smartphone. The authors focus particular attention on five areas that have seen great innovation as well as large volumes of disputes: ecommerce, healthcare, social media, labor, and the courts. As conflicts escalate with the increase in innovation, the authors emphasize the need for new dispute resolution processes and new ways to avoid disputes, something that has been ignored by those seeking to improve access to justice in the past.

Good lawyers have an ability to tell stories. Whether they are arguing a murder case or a complex financial securities case, they can capably explain a chain of events to judges and juries so that they understand them. The best lawyers are also able to construct narratives that have an emotional impact on their intended audiences. But what is a narrative, and how can lawyers go about constructing one? How does one transform a cold presentation of facts into a seamless story that clearly and compellingly takes readers not only from point A to point B, but to points C, D, E, F, and G as well? In Storytelling for Lawyers, Phil Meyer explains how. He begins with a pragmatic theory of the narrative foundations of litigation practice and then applies it to a range of practical illustrative examples: briefs, judicial opinions and oral arguments. Intended for legal practitioners, teachers, law students, and even interdisciplinary academics, the book offers a basic yet comprehensive explanation of the central role of narrative in litigation. The book also offers a narrative tool kit that supplements the analytical skills traditionally emphasized in law school as well as practical tips for practicing attorneys that will help them craft their own legal stories.

The most glamorous and even glorious moments in a legal system come when a high court recognizes an abstract principle involving, for example, human liberty or equality. Indeed, Americans, and not a few non-Americans, have been greatly stirred--and divided--by the opinions of the Supreme Court, especially in the area of race relations, where the Court has tried to revolutionize American society. But these stirring decisions are aberrations, says Cass R. Sunstein, and perhaps thankfully so. In Legal Reasoning and Political Conflict, Sunstein, one of America's best known commentators on our legal system, offers a bold, new thesis about how the law should work in America, arguing that the courts best enable people to live together, despite their diversity, by resolving particular cases without taking sides in broader, more abstract conflicts.
Sunstein offers a close analysis of the way the law can mediate disputes in a diverse society, examining how the law works in practical terms, and showing that, to arrive at workable, practical solutions, judges must avoid broad, abstract reasoning. Why? For one thing, critics and adversaries who would never agree on fundamental ideals are often willing to accept the concrete details of a particular decision. Likewise, a plea bargain for someone caught exceeding the speed limit need not--indeed, must not--delve into sweeping issues of government regulation and personal liberty. Thus judges purposely limit the scope of their decisions to avoid reopening large-scale controversies. Sunstein calls such actions incompletely theorized agreements. In identifying them as the core feature of legal reasoning--and as a central part of constitutional thinking in America, South Africa, and Eastern Europe-- he takes issue with advocates of comprehensive theories and systemization, from Robert Bork (who champions the original understanding of the Constitution) to Jeremy Bentham, the father of utilitarianism, and Ronald Dworkin, who defends an ambitious role for courts in the elaboration of rights. Equally important, Sunstein goes on to argue that it is the living practice of the nation's citizens that truly makes law. For example, he cites Griswold v. Connecticut, a groundbreaking case in which the Supreme Court struck down Connecticut's restrictions on the use of contraceptives by married couples--a law that was no longer enforced by prosecutors. In overturning the legislation, the Court invoked the abstract right of privacy; the author asserts that the justices should have appealed to the narrower principle that citizens need not comply with laws that lack real enforcement. By avoiding large-scale issues and values, such a decision could have led to a different outcome in Bowers v. Hardwick, the decision that upheld Georgia's rarely prosecuted ban on sodomy. And by pointing to the need for flexibility over time and circumstances, Sunstein offers a novel understanding of the old ideal of the rule of law.
Legal reasoning can seem impenetrable, mysterious, baroque. This book helps dissolve the mystery. Whether discussing the interpretation of the Constitution or the spell cast by the revolutionary Warren Court, Cass Sunstein writes with grace and power, offering a striking and original vision of the role of the law in a diverse society. In his flexible, practical approach to legal reasoning, he moves the debate over fundamental values and principles out of the courts and back to its rightful place in a democratic state: the legislatures elected by the people.

A book series devoted to the common foundations of the European legal systems. The Ius Commune Europaeum series includes comparative legal studies as well as studies on the effect of treaties within national legal systems. All areas of the law are covered. The books are published in various European languages under the auspices of METRO, the Institute for Transnational Legal Research at Maastricht University. This book discusses the impact of EU law on selected national legal systems. The authors analyse how the civil procedure system of their country has reacted to increasing Europeanisation and influence of EU law. They identify significant changes and disseminate the reasons for particular developments and the further implications of EU law on the civil procedure.Europe is in a period of increasing Europeanisation of civil procedure. Procedural elements of EU law are based on decentralised enforcement, leaving enforcement and procedural issues to the Member States. Consequently, there is vast amount of EU case law that is relevant for national procedural law. The supremacy of EU law and, inter alia, the requirements of effectiveness and equivalence may be relevant for several topics of national civil procedural law, for example ex officio application of EU law, enforcement, insolvency proceedings, evidence, etc. Both EU legislation and doctrinal changes in EU case law touch upon various topics of the procedural law of the Member States. In a concluding chapter, a more comprehensive comparison between the countries represented in the book is made. Which doctrines, which pieces of legislation or features in legislation pose problems for national civil procedure? Are some legal systems or topics more prone to integrate European rules, and are others more resistant to changes? This book displays the Europeanisation of national civil procedure law and helps to understand this development from the perspective of Member States.