Magistrates Act, 1993 (Act No. 90 of 1993)

Regulations for Judicial Officers in Lower Courts, 1994

Chapter I : General Provisions

1. Definitions

Purchase

In these regulations unless the context otherwise indicates—

"abroad"

means a country outside the borders of the Republic;

"accommodation expenditure"

means the expenditure in respect of lodging, meals (including non-alcoholic beverages with meals) and laundry;

"appropriate experience"

means experience gained after obtaining the legal qualifications referred to in regulation 3(1)(e), and regarded by the Commission as appropriate;

"candidate"

means a person who applies for appointment as a magistrate;

"court manager"

the court manager at the court where a magistrate is performing his or her duties;

"Department"

means the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development ;

"dependants"

means the members of a magistrate’s household, excluding domestic workers;

"Director-General"

means the Director-General of Justice and Constitutional Development or a person delegated by him or her;

"furnished housing"

means a hotel room or a rented room, a caravan, a hired furnished private house or official quarters which are provided, except by the magistrate, with the basic and essential furnishings;

"head of office"

means, in the case of a district magistrate, the head of the relevant magistrate’s office, in the case of a regional magistrate, the regional court president of that region and, in the case of a family magistrate and a senior civil magistrate, the chief magistrate under whom he falls;

"headquarters"

means the city, town or place which has been designated by the Commission or a person designated by the Commission;

"household"

means—

(a)	the spouse of a magistrate;

(b)

the magistrate’s or the spouse of the magistrate’s of necessity dependent child who is bona fide resident with such magistrate: Provided that if such child studies at an institution for post-school education, whether intramurally or extramurally, he shall be deemed to be a member of the household, but only—

(i)

if he or she did not after leaving school, take up any permanent full-time employment (including any type of vocational training to which remuneration is attached), excluding during vacations or temporary full-time employment which he or she had taken up between leaving school and commencing his or her studies at an educational institution at the commencement of the academic year following the completion of his or her schooling; and

(ii)

until—

(aa)	he attains the minimum post-school qualification (or minimum combination or post-school qualifications) which will enable him to take up employment in the field of study for which he originally intended to qualify himself; or

(bb)	the normal prescribed duration of the study period, as prescribed by the institution concerned for the study course, plus one academic year, expires if it takes him longer than such prescribed period to attain the relevant qualification as a result of poor academic performance; or

(cc)	he discontinues the course of study concerned; or

(dd)	he changes his course of study,

whichever of the said for events occurs first;

(c)	the magistrate’s or the spouse of the magistrate’s relative who is permanently resident with him and who is of necessity dependent on him and whose income, from any source, does not exceed the sum of—

(i)	the appropriate maximum basic social pension as prescribed by regulations promulgated in terms of—

(aa)	the Social Pensions Act, 1973 (Act No. 37 of 1973); or

(bb)	any other social pensions Act which is applicable in the Republic of South Africa; plus

(ii)	the maximum allowance for a war veteran to whom a social pension has been awarded in terms of the War Veterans’ Pensions Act, 1968 (Act No. 25 of 1968); plus

(iii)

the maximum allowance paid to a person as a result of a late application for a social or war veteran’s pension,

and, if the relative concerned is a social pensioner or war veteran pensioner, any allowances other than those referred to in subparagraphs (ii) and (iii) above, which he may receive in terms of the relevant regulations referred to above may be ignored for the purposes of this paragraph: Provided that where two relatives so reside with him and are dependent on him and where the one relative would normally have been a dependant of the other relative, for instance a father and a mother, both such relatives may be regarded as members of his household only if half of their joint income, from source, does not exceed the sum of the maximum basic social pension and war veteran’s pension and the allowances contemplated in paragraphs (i) and (iii) above; and

(d)	not more than two domestic workers (including nursemaids) employed in a full-time capacity by the magistrate;

"incidental expenditure"

means the expenditure in respect of tips for table and room service, reading matter, telephone calls, dry-cleaning and liquid refreshments which do not form part of meals;

"interim accommodation expenditure"

means furnished housing which is occupied temporarily while permanent accommodation is being sought or until permanent accommodation, which has already been obtained, becomes available for occupation;

"official quarters"

means those quarters, inclusive of buildings, outbuilding, grounds, fixtures, fittings, machines and equipment, but exclusive of furniture, that are owned or are held on lease or are otherwise in the lawful possession of the State and that are available to the Director-General for assignment in terms of regulation H5 of the Public Service Regulations or that have been allotted to a magistrate in terms of regulation H6 of the Public Service Regulations;

"personal property"

means the movable property of a magistrate and of his household, which is normally intended for personal use, including vehicles but excluding livestock, domestic animals and pets;

"preferentially promotable"

means that the magistrate’s work performance is of such a high standard that there is enough justification to promote him over the head of his rank associates that are promotable out of turn, regardless of his position of seniority;

"promotable in turn"

means that the magistrate is regarded as suitable for promotion when his turn for promotion arrives in accordance with his position of seniority;

"promotable out of turn"

means that the magistrate’s work performance is of such a nature that there exists enough justification to promote him over the head of his rank associates that are promotable in turn, regardless of his position of seniority;

"Public Service Regulations"

means the Public Service Regulations promulgated under section 41 of the Public Service Act, 1994 (Proclamation No. 103 of 1994);

"Public Service Staff Code"

means the Public Service Staff Code referred to in section 42 of the Public Service Act, 1994 (Proclamation No. 103 of 1994);

"State"

means the Government of the Republic of South Africa;

"the Act"

means the Magistrates Act, 1993 (Act No. 90 of 1993); and

"transfer"