South Africa - Central Authority (Art. 2) and practical information

Central Authority(ies):

Director-General
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development

Contact details:

Address: Director-General
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
Private Bag X81
Pretoria
0001
South Africa
Street Address: Momentum Centre, 329 Pretorius Street (c/o Pretorius and Sisulu Streets), Pretoria, South Africa
Telephone: 0123151261
Fax:  
E-mail: MaLeso@justice.gov.za
General website: https://www.justice.gov.za/
Contact person: Mr Malesela Leso
Languages spoken by staff: English

 

Practical Information

Blocking statutes: No blocking statute in force.

Chapter I
(Letters of Requests)

Transmission of Letters of Requests: Letters of Request are first sent to the Central Authority or to another authority of the requesting State before being sent to the Central Authority of the requested State.
Authority responsible for informing of the time and place of the execution of Letter of Request
(Art. 7):
Central Authority.
Presence of judicial personnel at the execution of the Letter of Request (Art. 8): Declaration of applicability. See Competent Authority.
Privileges and duties existing under the law of States other than the State of origin and the State of execution
(Art. 11):
No declaration of applicability.
Translation requirements
Arts 4(2) and 33):

Accepts Letters of Requests written in or translated into English.

For the purposes of paragraph 4 of Article 4 of the Convention, a Letter of Request, if not in English, may also be sent to the Central Authority in any of the following languages: Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, Siswati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, isiNdebele, isiXhosa and isiZulu.

Costs relating to execution of the Letters of Request
(Arts 14(2)(3) and 26):
South Africa has not sought reimbursement of costs under Art. 14(2) and 26.
Time for execution: No information available.
Pre-trial discovery of documents
Art. 23):
Letter of Request will not be executed (full exclusion).
Information about domestic rules on the taking of evidence:  Section 33 of the Supreme Court Act 59 of 1959.

Witness examination under Chapter I

Should Letters of Request include specific questions to be used during witness examination or only a list of matters to be addressed? Specific questions are required.
Is it a public or private hearing? Either public or private, it is in the magistrate's discretion.
Do the judicial authorities "blue-pencil" Letters of Requests (i.e. rephrase, restructure and / or strike out objectionable questions or offensive wording so that a Letter of Request may be executed under the laws of the requested State)? Yes.
Is the witness provided in advance with a copy of the questions / matters to be addressed as contained in the Letter of Request? No.
Are documents produced by the witness authenticated by the court? No.
Is an oath generally administered to the witness? Yes.
Can the witness be made subject to further examination and recall? Yes but a second request is necessary.
Are there sanctions for non-appearance of witness? If subpoenaed to appear in court, non-appearance amounts to contempt of court which carries a criminal sanction.
Must interpreters who assist with the witness examination be court-certified? Yes.
How is the testimony transcribed? Through stenographic means.

Chapter II
(Taking of evidence by diplomatic officers, consular agents and commissioners)

Article 15 Not applicable.
Article 16 Not applicable.
Article 17 Applicable. See Competent Authority.
Article 18 Applicable. See Competent Authority.

Taking of evidence by video-links
(under either chapter)

Chapter I

Are there legal obstacles to the use of video links? No.
Technology used: No information available.
Level of interpretation required: No information available.
Simultaneous or in sequence interpretation: No information available.
Interpretation required in which jurisdiction? No information available.
Who pays for the interpretation? No information available.
How would a request for evidence be handled if witness not willing? No information available.

Chapter II

Are there legal obstacles to the use of video links? No.
Technology used: No information available.
Level of interpretation required: No information available.
Simultaneous or in sequence interpretation: No information available.
Interpretation required in which jurisdiction? No information available.
Who pays for the interpretation? No information available.

Other Information

Bilateral or multilateral agreements To consult bilateral and multilateral treaties to which South Africa is a party, see: http://www.dirco.gov.za/chiefstatelawadvicer/treatysection.html
Useful links: http://www.dirco.gov.za/
Competent authorities (Art. 8, 17, 18)  Art. 8: See here.
Art. 17, 18: See here.
Additional authorities (Art. 24)  

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