Pursuing Gender Equality through the Courts: The Role of South Africa’s Women Judges

Abstract

The appointment of female judges in South Africa is part of the transformative constitutional project. This chapter examines the question of gender equality and specifically the contribution of female judges to the transformation of the judiciary in. It explores whether women judges have, in their judgements, conscripted and interpreted the Constitution to highlight and guarantee its transformative potential and possibilities. The chapter attempts to answer two questions: What difference has the cohort of women judges made since their appointment in significant numbers post-1994? What is the impact of women judges on constitutional jurisprudence with respect to gender equality? I conclude that despite some overlap between the opinions of the female and male judges, the opinions of the female judges differ in some significant ways from their male counterparts. This difference is located in the distinct way that female judges have framed the legal issues. The chapter has pointed out that considerable institutional obstacles continue to impede women’s appointment to the judiciary, but once on the bench, they really make a difference.