Find a litigation attorney in South Africa: civil claims and defences in the Magistrates Courts and High Court, summons, trials and urgent applications.
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Elzana Gerber Attorneys
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A litigation attorney runs disputes through the courts: the letter of demand, summons or application, pleadings, discovery, pre-trial procedures, the trial or hearing, and enforcement of the judgment afterwards. They brief advocates where a matter needs one, manage the court diary and its unforgiving time limits, and advise throughout on whether to settle.
Litigation is billed hourly, plus advocate fees, sheriff and court costs, with a written estimate at the start as the Legal Practice Act requires. The loser is usually ordered to pay the winner costs, but on a tariff that recovers only part of what was actually spent. Contingency fee agreements are allowed for some claims under the Contingency Fees Act.
General information about South African law and practice, not advice on your matter. The practitioners listed on this page give that advice.
The District Magistrates Court hears claims up to R200 000 and the Regional Court up to R400 000; larger claims and most applications for interdicts and reviews go to the High Court. The court also depends on where the defendant lives or where the cause of action arose. Costs and delays rise with each level.
An undefended claim can end in judgment within a few months. A defended action commonly takes eighteen months to three years to reach trial in the High Court, depending on the division. Urgent applications can be heard within days. Most matters settle before trial.
Under Uniform Rule 1 a court day excludes Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and the day of the triggering event is not counted. Most time limits in the rules, such as the ten days to file a plea after a notice of bar, are in court days. The court days calculator on this site counts them.
Court days per Uniform Rule 1, a prescription register, court-day checklists and the weekly court roll.