Mzozolo Magidiwana and Other Injured and Arrested Persons v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others

The applicants were injured, arrested, or were families of deceased persons following the August 2012 Marikana mine shootings by members of the South African Police Service. The President established the Marikana Commission of Inquiry to investigate the incident. The applicants initially secured private funding for legal representation at the Commission, but this funding expired and they were unable to obtain further resources. Requests for state-funded legal representation were refused by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development and by Legal Aid South Africa on the basis that no legal framework or policy existed to fund participation in commissions of inquiry. The applicants brought an urgent application in the High Court seeking temporary and final relief compelling the state to provide legal aid at state expense for their participation in the Commission. The High Court dismissed the urgent application for interim relief. The applicants sought urgent leave to appeal directly to the Constitutional Court.

The application for leave to appeal was dismissed. No order as to costs was made.

The case clarifies the limits of constitutional entitlements to state-funded legal representation and affirms judicial restraint in matters involving interim relief and executive allocation of public resources. It reinforces separation of powers principles and confirms that participation in commissions of inquiry does not, without more, give rise to a constitutional right to legal aid at state expense.