Two matters were heard together in the Constitutional Court. In the first, the Minister of Defence appealed against a Free State High Court decision declaring provisions of the Military Discipline Supplementary Measures Act 16 of 1999 unconstitutional. The High Court had held that the Act impermissibly authorised military prosecutors to institute and conduct prosecutions, allegedly infringing section 179 of the Constitution, which establishes a single national prosecuting authority under the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP). In the second matter, Legal Soldier (Pty) Ltd and others, including several SANDF members facing military prosecutions, sought direct access to the Constitutional Court to challenge the constitutionality of the military prosecution system on similar grounds. The soldiers contended that only the NDPP could constitutionally exercise prosecutorial authority and determine prosecution policy, and that the existence of an independent military prosecuting authority was unconstitutional and discriminatory.