Personal:

26 February 1966, Tarkastad, Eastern Cape

Education:

Matric: St. Matthews High School 

B. IURIS University of Transkei,1988

LLB University of Transkei, 1992

Certificate in Shipping : Institute of Shipbrokers, Durban , 2005

Certificate in Project Management University of Cape Town, 2019                                        

Professional History:

Public Prosecutor: Zwelitsha Magistrate’s Court, Ciskei, March 1988 - 1990

Tutor - Constitutional Law : University of Transkei, 1991

Admitted as an Advocate , 4 June 1992

Part-Time Lecturer ,University of Fort Hare - Civil Procedure ,1993 - 1994 

Appointed as Presiding Officer First Democratic Elections in King William's Town , 1994

State Advocate Bisho,1992 -1995

Seconded to the Goldstone Commission : Enquiry into Taxi Violence in the Eastern Cape,1995

Senior Legal Administrative Officer, Office of the Director General, Bhisho,1995 - July 1996

Enrolled as a pupil at the Durban Bar, August 1996 – December 1996

Commenced practice, 4 December 1996

Joined the Bisho Society of Advocates, January 1997

Member of the Bar Council, Bisho, 1999 - 2000

Joined the Durban Society of Advocates, February 2002

Acted  as a Judge in the Eastern Cape Division (Mthatha, Bisho, Grahamstown, Port Elizabeth) -   June 2002

Acted as a Judge in Bisho, Grahamstown, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Pietermaritzburg and South Gauteng during the years 2007, 2008, 2010,2014, 2015 ,2016 and 2021

Trainee at Holland & Knight, New York in Maritime Law - August 2004 -  January 2005

President -  South African Women Lawyers Association (Sawla) – KZN Region, 2007 - 2009

Member of the Bid Adjudication Tribunal KZN, 2009 - April 2011

Attained Silk Status, June 2011

Member of the Board for the Coega Development Corporation, 2014

Served on the Board: Ushaka Marine Theme Park, 08 February 2005 - 24 January 2011

Appointed by the Premier, KZN as a Chairperson of the RTI Recruitment Commission, 1 March  2013 – 5 June 2014

Elected to serve on the General Council of the Bar (the GCB) as an Assistant Honorary Secretary, July 2015-2016

Appointed by the President of the Republic of South Africa to serve on the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), April 2017- 17 February 2020

Chairperson of the Advocates for Transformation in Kwazulu-Natal, November 2017 - 2019

Appointed as the Evidence Leader to the Commission of Enquiry into allegations of State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the Public Sector including Organs of State, March 2018 -2021.

As Senior Counsel held dual Chambers at: Salmon Grove Chambers, Durban, 2002- 2021 and also at : Thulamela Chambers, Sandton, 2012 – 2021.  

Appointed as a Judge, 1 January 2022 to date

Member of the South African Chapter of the International Association of Women Judges (SAC-IAWJ), February 2023 to date

Appointed as a Vice- Chairperson of the National Council for Correctional Services, 06 November 2023

Appointed as a Judge of the Special Tribunal, 1 November 2024

Acting Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal, 1 December 2024 - 31 May 2025

Acting Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal: 01 October 2025 - 30 November 2025

Acting Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal: 01 December 2025 - 31 March 2026

Acting Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal: 01 April 2026 - 31 May 2026

Personal:    

Born 5 December 1971

Husband: Samuel Phetla Two children

Education:       

Matric (1989) Centurion Academy, Johannesburg

B Proc (1995) Wits University, Johannesburg

LLM Human Rights and Constitutional Practice (1997) University of Pretoria

Master of Public Administration, Harvard University, Cambridge MA USA, 2005

Mason Fellow, Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, Cambridge MA USA, 2005

Professional History:

Attorney of the High Court of South Africa: 1997 - 2015

Acting Judge of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Johannesburg, various terms between 2nd term 2013 and 4th term 2015

Judge of the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, Johannesburg: 1 January 2016 to date

Member of the Special Tribunal of South Africa 2019 to April 2022

President of the Special Tribunal of South Africa 1 May 2022 to 30 June 2024

Judge member of the Electoral Court of South Africa, 1 January 2022 to date.

Acting Judge of Appeal, Supreme Court of Appeal: 1 December 2024 to 31 March 2025, 01 April 2025 - 31 May 2025, 01 June 2025 - 30 September 2025

Publications, Awards, Honours and other activities:

Completed the Association of Law Societies’ Practical Legal Course with Outstanding performance, 1996

Harvard-South Africa Scholarship, 2004

Member of the Black Lawyers Association: 2008 to 2015

Personal 

 Born: 23 May 1959, Johannesburg

Wife: Christine Bonner

Education

Matric: Nirvana High School, Lenasia (1976)

B.Com: University of Witwatersrand (1981)

BA (Hons) Industrial Sociology: University of Witwatersrand (1982)

MA Sociology of Labour Studies: University of Warwich, UK (1984)

LLM Labour Law: University of Witwatersrand (1993)

LLB: University of Witwatersrand (1995)

Professional History

Tutor in Medical Sociology: University of Witwatersrand (1982-83)

Junior Lecture: Sociology Department: University of Witwatersrand (1989-90)

Organiser/Educator: Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers Union SA (1985-86)

Mediator: Independent Mediation Services of SA (IMSSA) (1991-96)

Arbitrator: IMSSA (1993-96)

Senior Commisioner: CCMA (1996-2002)

Practicing Advocate, Johannesburg Bar (1996-2012): Senior Counsel (2010)

Acting Judge: South Gauteng High Court: (Oct-Dec 2010)

Judge of the High Court of South Africa (May 2012 - present)

Acting Judge: Competition Court Appeal (April 2016 - May 2018)

Judge: Competition Court Appeal (May 2018 - April 2023)

Acting Judge President: Competition Court Appeal (June 2022 - 30 November 2022)

Acting Judge: Competition Court Appeal (April 2023 - present)

Acting Judge: Supreme Court of Appeal: 1 December 2024 - 31 March 2025, 01 April - 31 May 2025

Acting Judge: Supreme Court of Appeal: 01 January - 31 March 2026

Publications, Awards, Honours and other activities

British Council Scholarship (1986)

Academic Staff Association: WITS University- Executive member and Chairman of the Affirmitive Action sub-committee (1990)

IMSSA Balloting Panel member (1991-95)

IMSSA Member of Board of Trustees (1993-94)

Chairperson of Commision of Enquiry into certain allegations regarding management practices in the Soweto  districy of Eskom (1996)

Metal and Engineering Imdustries Bargaining Council: Exemption Committee ( 1996-2003)

Essential Services Committee (1999-2206), Chairperson (2000-06)

Education Labour Relarions Council, Arbitration Panel member (2000-09)

Member of Black Advocates Forum (BAFO) (1996-2003)

Member of Advocates for Transformation: Executive Committee Member (2003-12), Treasurer (2010-12)

Member: Johannesburg Society of Advocates  (1996-2012), Professional committee member (1996-2012)

Financial Manager, Group 16 (1999-2002), Duma Nokwe (2005-07)

Management and and Finance Committee Member: Maisels Chambers (2007-12)

A Social Contract - the way forward a critical evaluation (1992)

"Strikes, Dismisals and Collective Bargaining: A case for a more rational and constructive approach" in South Africa Journal of Labour Relations Vol 16, No 1, March 1992 

" Denying the strike: Seifsa v Numsa" in Employment Law Vol 9, No 3, January 1993

" Paradigms Lost - A search for the Socialogical Perspective", (co-authored with M Saransky) in Saransky M (ed) Social Theory , Lexicon Publishers, 1994

Personal

Born                    :               28 August 1962

Husband             :               Josef Benjamin Steyn

Son & wife          :               Ruan and Michelle Steyn

Grandson            :              Jack Benjamin Steyn

Education

Matric                  :               J J Du Preez High School (1980)

BIuris                   :               University of South Africa (1983)

LLB                      :               University of Western Cape (1994)

LLM                     :               University of Cape Town (1999)

Professional History

District Court Magistrate and Senior Prosecutor, Department of Justice: (1987-1995)

Chair of Rape Forum and Juvenile Justice Forum: (1992-1995)

Convenor of the Criminal Offences Task Team, responsible for drafting the Criminal offences of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998

Senior Lecturer at University of Cape Town and University of Western Cape: (1996-2007)

Acting Judge, Northern Cape: (October-December 2008)

Judge KwaZulu-Natal Division: (January 2009 to date)

Acting Judge of the Electoral Court: (01 May 2024 - 30 June 2026)

Acting Judge of Appeal: Supreme Court of Appeal (April 2025 – 30 September 2025; 1 December - 31 March 2026; and 1 April – 31 May 2026)

Acting Deputy Judge President KwaZulu-Natal Division: (24 February – 30 March 2025 & 13 October – 9 November 2025)

Honours and other activities

Vice-Chair of the National Council of Correctional Services (2015 – 2019)

Member of SAJEI Council (2023 till present)

Commissioner of Jali Commission (2002 – 2005)

Convenor of the Criminal Offences Task Team responsible for drafting the criminal offences contained in the Prevention of Organised Crime Act, 121 of 1998

Distinguished Teachers’ Award UCT (2001)

Recipient research grant from Aberdeen University Scotland for project ‘Constitutional Criminal Justice: A comparative study’.

Represented NCCS at APAI Conference March 2019, Baltimore USA.

Publications

D van Zyl Smit and E Steyn, chapter titled ‘The South African Prison System’, published by J P Cére et C Eduardo (eds) Le systéme pénitentiaire dans le Monde 2 ed (2011) (Dalloz publishers)

‘Plea Bargaining in SA: current concerns and future prospects’ (2007) 20 SACJ 206-219

‘Do victims of crime play any role at sentencing and do their rights impact on the prison population?’ Paper presented in Teheran, published by the Iran Prison Organisation.

Jali Commission Report Volumes 1-5, published November 2006, Co-author of the reports.

D van Zyl Smit and E Steyn ‘Prisons systems of the world’ in J P Cere and C E Japiassu (eds) Le systéme pénitentiaire en Afrique du Sud (Dalloz publishers).

‘Undue delay in criminal cases: The Scottish and South African courts response’ (2003) Acta Juridica, 139-159. Also published as a chapter in J Sarkin et al, The Administration of Justice: Current Themes in Comparative Perspective, 153-172 (Four Court Press: Dublin).

‘The Draft Anti-terrorism Bill of 2000: The Lobster Pot of the South African Criminal Justice System’ (2001) 14 SACJ 179-194.

‘An Evaluation of the SA Constitutional Court’s decision on bail’ – Sarkin, Steyn, Van Zyl Smit and Paschke in ‘Resolving the tension between Crime and Human Rights: An Evaluation of European and South African issues’ edited Sarkin et al, at 217 to 241.

D van Zyl Smit, E Steyn, J Sarkin and R Paschke ‘Individual liberty in crisis?’ Reflections on the decision of the Consitutional Court in S v Dlamini; S v Dladla and Others; S v Joubert; S v Schietekat (2000) 16 SAJHR 292-312.

CIJL Prosecuting authority in the new South Africa – D van Zyl Smit and E Steyn.

A call for the abolition of the ‘hue and cry’ rule’. Published in News and Reviews December edition

LLM Thesis – ‘Witnesses in South Africa, The Stepchildren of the Criminal Justice System’ (limited publication, libraries UCT only).