Book Review: Cooper's Motor Law: Criminal Liability, Administrative Adjudication and Medico-Legal Aspects

• Jurisdiction: South Africa
• Date: 16 August 2019
• Author: Jeannine Leigh Pieber
• Pages: 359-360
• Citation: (2009) 20 Stell LR 359
• Published date: 16 August 2019

Cooper’s Motor Law: Criminal Liability, Administrative Adjudication

and Medico-Legal Aspects 2 ed by Shannon V Hoctor. Ju ta & Co

Cape Town 2008. ISBN 9780702178870 Looseleaf (original ser vice).

R595.00

Professor Shannon Hoctor, a criminal law expert with extensive publications

on motor law and criminal liability (see eg Hoctor “Road Trafc Offences” in

Milton, Cowling & Hoctor (eds) South African Criminal Law and Procedure

III: Statutory Offence s) 2 ed (1988); Hoctor “Road Rage and Reasoning about

Responsibility” 2001 South Afr ican Journal of Crimin al Justice 195; Hoctor

“Dealing with Death on the Roads – S v Nyahti 2005 2 SACR 273 (SCA)”

2005 Obiter 429; Hoctor “What does ‘Reasonable Consideration’ mean in the

Offence of Incon siderate Dr iving? 2006 Obiter 146; Hoctor “Pr inciples gov-

erning Sentence on a Charge of Driving under the I nuence of Intoxicating

Liquor or Drugs” 2006 Obiter 293; Hoctor “Sentencing Reckless or Negligent

Driving” 2007 Obiter 111; Hoctor “P unishing the Failure to comply with

Statutory D uties in the Event of an Accident” 2007 Obiter 331), has breathed

new life into Cooper’s Motor Law. With its predec essor published in 1982

(replacing the 1965 S outh African Motor Law) this edition is an eagerly

awaited, essential gu ide to motor law in South Afr ica.

Due to the comprehensive nature of the research and content of the publica-

tion, it is cer tainly a must-read for a cademics and a helpful g uide for legal

practitioners and trafc authorities. It very adequately meets the need of

South Africa n motor law, which rst was un ied by a national code for road

trafc i n the form of the Road Trafc Act 29 of 1989, and then subsequently

reformed by the Road Trafc Act 93 of 1996 (“the Act”).

The most signicant differe nce between the current work and its predeces-

sor is the qualit y level of t he legal analysis. Professor Hoctor gives a clear,

comprehensive section by section commentary on the Act, covering every

crucial aspect of the relevant law. As each section of the Act is set out prior to

its discus sion, it a llows for ea sy map-reading between legislative provisions

and com ments. Guidance is provided on t he interpretation (Section B1) and

REVIEWS / RESENSIES 359

(2009) 20 Stell LR 359

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