The role of a curator ad litem and children's access to the courts
Author | Trynie Boezaart |
DOI | 10.10520/EJC146728 |
Published date | 01 January 2013 |
Date | 01 January 2013 |
Pages | 707-726 |
707
The role of a curator
ad litem
and
children’s access to the courts
Trynie Boezaart*
BA LLB LLD
Professor and Head, Department of Private Law, University of Pretoria
OPSOMMING
Die Ro l van d ie Kurator
ad litem
en Kinders se Reg op Toegang tot die Howe
Normaalweg is dit ’n kind se ouer(s) wat hom of haar in litigasie bystaan
of vir en namens die kind litigeer. In uitsonderlike gevalle is dit egter nie
moontlik of wenslik om hierdie funksie aan die ouers of voogde oor te laat
nie. Dit is deel van ons Romeins-Hollandse regserfenis dat kurators ad
litem in hierdie gevalle gebruik word om kinders se ontbrekende of
beperkte verskyningsbevoegdheid aan te vul. In hierdie bydrae word
aangetoon dat die regspraak die rol van die kurator ad litem duidelik
omskryf het deur dit onder andere te onderskei van die rol van die
Gesinsadvokaat en ’n regsverteenwoordiger. Daar word voorts ook
aangetoon dat die howe egter verder gegaan het en die rol van die kurator
ad litem wat vir kinders optree, uitgebrei het om onder andere ook die
belange van kinders in die algemeen te dien, dus in gevalle waar hulle nie
voor die hof was nie. Die uitbreiding van die rol van hierdie kurators kan
op vele maniere verklaar word. Dit kan egter nie betwyfel word dat die
Kinderwet 38 van 2005 en litigasie wat in die openbare belang ten
behoewe van kinders onderneem word, ’n leeue-aandeel hierin gespeel
het nie.
Hierdie uitbreiding word verwelkom omdat toegang tot die howe
noodsaaklik is ten einde sosiale geregtigheid te bewerkstellig en
kinderregte te verwesenlik. Daar word egter ook aangetoon dat die Suid-
Afrikaanse kinderreg in hierdie verband by ander regstelsels kan
kersopsteek, aangesien kinders in sekere gevalle steeds hul reg op
deelname aan belangrike besluitneming ontneem word.
1 Introduction
Access to the courts is essential to achieve social justice. This is true with
respect to everybody, including children. A curator ad litem legally assists
children in litigation.1 A curator ad litem is appointed “to avoid injustice.
1 I wish to express my gratitude towards Prof Ann Skelton, Director of the
Centre for Child Law for making unreported judgements available to me
and two of the academic associates in the Department of Private Law,
Hanneke Verwey and Lizelna Botha, for their assistance. A draft version of
the paper was presented at the “Private Law and Social Justice
Conference”, Port Elizabeth, 2013-08-19.
1 See Molete v MEC for Health, Free State (2155/09) [2012] ZAFSHC 126
where it was decided that a curator ad litem would serve no purpose
because the trial had been finalised. The court did proceed to appoint a
curator bonis to manage the child’s estate and compensation that the child
received.
*
708 2013 De Jure
… [T]he Court has power to appoint, and will appoint, a curator ad litem
to assist persons to vindicate rights where there is no other suitable
means…”.2 The purpose of this article is to establish the role of a curator
ad litem appearing for children in South African courts, and in particular
whether the role of the curator ad litem has developed to the extent that
it improves children’s right of access to the courts.
A very brief comparative study will be included comparing the curator
ad litem under South African law to similar appointments in other
jurisdictions. The aim of this comparison is to shed light on the
contribution these appointments make in securing access to the cour ts
for all children.
2 The Common Law Origin
The Roman Dutch law distinguished between an infans, a child under the
age of seven years, and a minor, a child of seven years or older, when
considering the legal capacity of the child.3 The infans had no capacity to
litigate, at least not in his or her own name.4 The parent or guardian of
the infans had to sue or be sued on behalf of the infans.5 A minor had
limited capacity to litigate.6 The general tenor regarding litigation in the
common law involving minors was that minors had no persona standi in
iudicio and could not institute court proceedings or defend legal
proceedings without the assistance of their parents or guardians.7 De
Groot explained that minors do not have the capacity to litigate because
they do not care for themselves or manage their own affairs.8
2 Per Reynolds J in Ex parte Phillipson and Wells NNO 1954 1 SA 245 (E) 246.
3 Voet 2 4 4. However, it must be borne in mind that “minor” sometimes
refers to all children, thus including infantes and sometimes in the narrow
sense, only referring to children aged seven and above.
4 Voet 2 4 4, 26 7 12. This incapacity of the infans originated in Roman law.
See De Groot 1 8 4; Van der Keessel Theses Selectae 127, Praelectiones 1 8
4.
5 De Groot 1 4 1, 1 6 1, 1 7 8. He confirmed 1 8 4 that all legal proceedings
must be conducted in the name of th e guardian. Compare also Voet 2 4 4, 5
1 11, 26 7 12; Van Leeuwen RHR 5 3 5; Van der Keessel Theses Selectae 127,
Praelectiones 1 4 1, 1 8 4; Van der Linden Koopmans Handboek 3 2 2.
6 De Groot 1 4 1, 1 8 4. Compare Van der Vyver “Verskyningsbevoegdheid
van minderjariges” 1979 THRHR 129 131.
7 De Groot 1 4 1 mentions an exception in criminal matters.
8 De Groot 1 4 1. See also De Groot 1 6 1, 1 7 8, 1 8 4; Groenewegen De Leg
Abr 3 6 3 2; Van Leeuwen RHR 5 3 5. Voet 2 4 4 mentions that minors may
not be summoned without the authority of a guardian. He adds (5 1 11) that
a minor ought not to institute proceedings without a guardian and explains
(26 7 12) that a guardian’s duty is to appear on behalf of his ward in legal
proceedings, whether he institutes an action on behalf of a minor or
defends him when the minor has been sued by another. See also Van der
Keessel Theses Selectae 127 explaining that a minor could not appear in
court either as plaintiff or defendant without the assistance of his or her
guardian. In Praelectiones 1 8 4 he comments that minors who institute
proceedings or defend such proceedings could not do so in their own
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