MEDIA STATEMENT MEDIA STATEMENT BY MR A C NEL, MP, DEPUTY MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT

It is with pleasure and appreciation that I can announce that Ms Xoliswa Bacela has volunteered her services and has been appointed as a Commissioner for the Small Claims Court for the area of Middledrift in the Eastern Cape. Small Claims Courts deal with certain civil matters of up to R12 000.00. Members of the public present their cases to a Commissioner, who are appointed by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development to preside over small claims matters. Commissioners are drawn from a pool of professional persons, mandated in the legislation, with experience of civil matters, such as attorneys or advocates who perform this laudable community service free of charge. Members of the public can access the Small Claims Courts without any financial burden except for the sheriff’s fee(s) for the service of any court process that may be required. Only natural persons may institute an action as a plaintiff in the Small Claims Courts. Legal representatives are not allowed in Small Claims Courts. You can read more about Small Claims Courts on the departmental website at www.justice.gov.za, (under the civil section). Ms Bacela was admitted as an attorney on 20 November 1997 and has practiced as such, uninterrupted, since then. She has been a Commissioner of the Zwelitsha Small Claims Court since 2003. The Middledrift Small Claims Court sits at the Middledrift Magistrate’s Court, c/o Mangconde and Mkwayi Streets, Middledrift. Cases can be registered with the Small Claims Court’s Clerks at the Court. Mr Mlamli Kwetane, the Court Manager at Middledrift, can be contacted for further details, if required, at tel (040) 657 3005.

Enquiries: Office of the Deputy Minister Tel: (012) 315 1418/1025 Issued by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development: Media Research and Liaison 05 July 2013

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