| Eastern Cape High Court, Grahamstown | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1864 (Eastern Districts Court) |
| Jurisdiction | Eastern Cape, South Africa |
| Location | Grahamstown |
| Composition method | Presidential appointment on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission |
| Authorized by | Chp. 8 of the Constitution; Supreme Court Act, 1959 |
| Decisions are appealed to | Supreme Court of Appeal or Constitutional Court |
| Judge President | |
| Currently | Themba Sangoni |
The Eastern Cape High Court, Grahamstown (formerly the Eastern Cape Provincial Division) is one of the High Courts of South Africa. It sits at Grahamstown and has general jurisdiction over the Eastern Cape province except for the areas of the former Transkei and Ciskei.
The court in Grahamstown was first established in 1864 as the Court of the Eastern Districts of the Cape of Good Hope, to ease access to justice for the residents of what is now the Eastern Cape.[1] The Eastern Districts Court was subordinate to the Supreme Court of the Cape of Good Hope in Cape Town, which had concurrent jurisdiction over the eastern districts.[2] When the Union of South Africa was created in 1910, the Eastern Districts Court became the Eastern Districts Local Division of the Supreme Court of South Africa.[2]
In 1957 the division was removed from the concurrent jurisdiction of the court at Cape Town and renamed as the Eastern Cape Provincial Division.[1] In 1973 the Transkei was removed from the jurisdiction of the court when the Transkeian High Court was established; that court became the Supreme Court of the Transkei when the Transkei received nominal independence, and is now the Eastern Cape High Court, Mthatha.[3] In 1974 the South Eastern Cape Local Division was established in Port Elizabeth to serve that city and the surrounding districts, although the Grahamstown court retained concurrent jurisdiction;[1] the local division is now known as the Eastern Cape High Court, Port Elizabeth. In 1981 the Ciskei received nominal independence, and established its own Supreme Court;[2] that court is now the Eastern Cape High Court, Bhisho.
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