Public Interest Litigation in South Africa offers a collection of grounded accounts – by leaders in the field – of the campaigns, cases, and causes that have defined key areas of public interest litigation in the country since the constitutional transition. The authors share their perspectives on the struggles led by people, communities, activists, and civil society organisations to realise the vision of the Constitution. This volume captures the legal narratives of those particular struggles in the hope that this will contribute to the broader, ongoing struggle for social justice.

Part One of the book considers general themes relating to public interest litigation. These include its history, the development of the public interest sector and the impact and value of public interest litigation; the role of international law in public interest litigation; the ethics and politics of public interest litigation; and constitutional procedure. Part Two addresses public interest litigation in ten key areas of law: property rights, gender, basic services, health care, LGBTI equality, children’s rights, basic education, freedom of expression, access to information, and prisoners’ rights.

Public Interest Litigation in South Africa seeks to share some of what has been achieved in the courts, beyond the well-trodden landmark appellate decisions, as a contribution to informed and critical engagement with litigation as a tool for social change.

• PART I: General themes
  • Introduction: the past, present and promise of public interest litigation in South Africa Jason Brickhill
  • The world’s law and South African domestic courts: the role of international law in public interest litigation – Max du Plessis and Stuart Scott
  • The ethics and politics of public interest litigation – Jason Brickhill and Meghan Finn
  • Constitutional litigation procedure – Georgina Jephson and Osmond Mngomezulu 
• PART 2: Public interest litigation in key areas of the law 
  • Making space for social change: pro-poor property rights litigation in post-apartheid South Africa – Stuart Wilson 
  • Gender and public interest litigation in post-apartheid South Africa: have ‘systematic motifs of discrimination’ been addressed? – Bonita Meyersfeld and Nomonde Nyembe
  • Basic services – Jackie Dugard 
  • Health care – Nikki Stein 
  • Happy (n)ever after? Public interest litigation for LGBTI equality – Kerry Williams and Melanie Judge
  • Children’s rights – Ann Skelton
  • Litigating the right to basic education – Cameron McConnachie and Samantha Brener 
  • Freedom of expression – Dario Milo and Avani Singh
  • Access to information – Dario Milo and Avani Singh 
  • Public interest litigation and prisoners’ rights – Clare Ballard and Frances Hobden

• Public interest law firms
• Legal practitioners
• Civil society organisations
• Legal academics