John Hlophe loses court bid to stall impeachment vote
Hlophe faces impeachment for a 2008 complaint by Constitutional Court justices that he tried to influence the outcomes of cases related to Jacob Zuma
21 February 2024 - 11:32
by Staff Writer
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Suspended Western Cape judge president John Hlophe. File picture: PUXLEY MAKGATHO.
Suspended Western Cape judge president John Hlophe has failed in an 11th-hour bid in court to halt a parliamentary vote on his impeachment.
Hlophe’s application to interdict the impeachment vote was heard on Tuesday in the Western Cape High Court.
Gauteng judge Sulet Potterill, who heard the application, struck the urgent application for an interdict off the roll in a ruling on Wednesday.
Hlophe had asked the court to interdict the vote pending the outcome of an application to the Constitutional Court, in which he seeks to set aside the justice portfolio committee’s decision to recommend impeachment and to direct parliament to adopt impeachment rules for judges.
Hlophe faces impeachment for a 2008 complaint by all the then-justices of the Constitutional Court, that he tried to influence the outcomes of pending cases before their court connected to corruption charges against former president Jacob Zuma.
In 2021, the Judicial Service Commission found him guilty of gross misconduct, saying he had attempted to improperly influence two of the apex court’s members to decide pending matters “in favour of particular litigants”.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
John Hlophe loses court bid to stall impeachment vote
Hlophe faces impeachment for a 2008 complaint by Constitutional Court justices that he tried to influence the outcomes of cases related to Jacob Zuma
Suspended Western Cape judge president John Hlophe has failed in an 11th-hour bid in court to halt a parliamentary vote on his impeachment.
Hlophe’s application to interdict the impeachment vote was heard on Tuesday in the Western Cape High Court.
Gauteng judge Sulet Potterill, who heard the application, struck the urgent application for an interdict off the roll in a ruling on Wednesday.
Hlophe had asked the court to interdict the vote pending the outcome of an application to the Constitutional Court, in which he seeks to set aside the justice portfolio committee’s decision to recommend impeachment and to direct parliament to adopt impeachment rules for judges.
Hlophe faces impeachment for a 2008 complaint by all the then-justices of the Constitutional Court, that he tried to influence the outcomes of pending cases before their court connected to corruption charges against former president Jacob Zuma.
In 2021, the Judicial Service Commission found him guilty of gross misconduct, saying he had attempted to improperly influence two of the apex court’s members to decide pending matters “in favour of particular litigants”.
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