Most planning degrees at South African universities include a compulsory course in planning law. This is usually the first time that planning students encounter law as a discipline. Planning students therefore need to familiarise themselves with sources such as the Constitution, legislation and court decisions. The Planning Law Casebook seeks to assist students in this regard. Understanding how to use, interpret and apply case law is perhaps the most difficult aspect of planning law.

Part I of the Planning Law Casebook describes the different parts of a typical court case. Part II briefly explains how the Casebook should be used. Part III contains discussions and analyses of 18 key planning law cases, which reflect the different components of current planning law. Part IV is a glossary in which the relevant legal concepts and terminology are defined. Part V includes extracts from applicable legislation. Part VI provides examples of typical planning documents, such as a deed of transfer, a notice of the removal of a restrictive condition or rezoning, and a part of a schedule to a town planning scheme indicating one of the zoning categories.

Now part of the Juta’s Property Law Library series, the third edition provides a comprehensive discussion of the core aspects of South African planning law.

The second edition, Planning Law (2012), reflected more of the new constitutional dispensation that brought with it not only a focus on values and equity, but also the development of an entirely new vision and structure for planning in the three spheres of government. It introduced some basic principles, addressed the apartheid roots of planning law in South Africa and gave detailed attention to the core of planning law.

Since the publication of the second edition, planning law has received increasing attention and the constitutional, legislative and jurisprudential framework has undergone significant contextual development. Evolving constitutional insights are providing a better perspective on the content of planning law and the impact of planning frameworks and decisions on government, in its three spheres, as well as owners and neighbours.

The Constitutional Court has, to a large extent, clarified the different planning competences and how these are allocated to each of the spheres of government. The enactment of the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act 16 of 2013 (SPLUMA) has paved the way for the discipline to develop considerably and to be more integrated. The resultant effect on planning law has been immense and has necessitated this new edition that has been reworked and updated in its entirety. Since planning law is multi-faceted, the book also deals with related administrative, environmental, local government and informal settlement issues. All the relevant legal principles and legislative provisions are amplified by discussions of applicable court decisions.