Jason Brickhill

Jason Brickhill is a doctoral candidate and tutor at the University of Oxford, an advocate at the Johannesburg Bar and an Honorary Research Associate at the University of Cape Town. His doctoral research looks at the impact of strategic litigation in South Africa. He has published widely in constitutional law and human rights, his latest book being J Brickhill (ed) Public Interest Litigation in South Africa (Juta 2018). He is the former Director of the Constitutional Litigation Unit of the Legal Resources Centre. As an advocate, Jason has appeared frequently in the superior courts of South Africa. His academic work has also been cited on several occasions by the Constitutional Court of South Africa.

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South African Constitutional Court sentences former President Zuma to 15 months’ in prison for contempt of court

South African Constitutional Court sentences former President Zuma to 15 months’ in prison for contempt of court

On 29 June 2021, the Constitutional Court of South Africa ran out of patience with former President Zuma’s very public recalcitrance, finding the former President guilty of contempt of court and sentencing him to 15 months’ direct ...
Historic South African Silicosis Class Action Settlement Approved

Historic South African Silicosis Class Action Settlement Approved

On 26 July 2019, the High Court approved a settlement between 20 goldmining companies operating in South Africa (including African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Gold Fields, Harmony Gold) and representative ...
Coup, Constitution and Commission: Commission of Inquiry into Zimbabwean Electoral Violence Confirms Military Killings of Civilians

Coup, Constitution and Commission: Commission of Inquiry into Zimbabwean Electoral Violence Confirms Military Killings of Civilians

In a series of earlier posts, I have tracked a series of events in Zimbabwe beginning with the military-assisted coup to remove Robert Mugabe and install Emmerson Mnangagwa as President. The coup of November 2017 and its assault on ...
Coup, Constitution and the Court: Zimbabwean Constitutional Court whitewashes flawed rigged elections

Coup, Constitution and the Court: Zimbabwean Constitutional Court whitewashes flawed rigged elections

Today, the Constitutional Court dismissed a legal challenge to Zimbabwe’s presidential elections. In my previous post, I reported on the conduct of the elections and the ensuing military crackdown. Information in the public domain ...
Coup, Constitution and the Count: Zimbabwe’s Disputed Elections

Coup, Constitution and the Count: Zimbabwe’s Disputed Elections

In November 2017, Robert Mugabe’s 38-year rule ended. At the time, I called this what it was – a coup – though popular among many Zimbabweans who thronged the streets alongside the tanks. In an attempt to legitimise the coup, ...
Coup and Constitution in Zimbabwe Part 2: A Path Back to Constitutionalism

Coup and Constitution in Zimbabwe Part 2: A Path Back to Constitutionalism

In my previous post, I observed that the military action in Zimbabwe – whatever name it goes by – made a profound rupture in the rule of law and that this matters for the future. Since then, major developments have taken place. In ...
Coup and Constitution in Zimbabwe Part 1: The Military Action is Profoundly Unconstitutional

Coup and Constitution in Zimbabwe Part 1: The Military Action is Profoundly Unconstitutional

On 14 November 2017, the Zimbabwe Defence Force (ZDF) took control of key parts of Zimbabwe’s capital Harare. Military personnel placed tanks and military vehicles on arterial roads, seized the public broadcaster and state daily ...
Secret Ballot: Vote of No Confidence in South African President Narrowly Defeated

Secret Ballot: Vote of No Confidence in South African President Narrowly Defeated

In an earlier blog post, I discussed the decision of the Constitutional Court regarding the process to be followed by the South African Parliament in the vote of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma. The Speaker of the National ...
Trillion-Rand South African Nuclear Procurement Halted By South African High Court

Trillion-Rand South African Nuclear Procurement Halted By South African High Court

The South African government’s nuclear procurement programme, already mired in controversy in the media amidst allegations of corruption, suffered a major set-back on 26 April 2017 when the High Court set aside various steps taken to ...
South African Constitutional Court Allows Secret Ballot for Motion of No Confidence in the President

South African Constitutional Court Allows Secret Ballot for Motion of No Confidence in the President

The South African Constitutional Court yesterday upheld an application by opposition political parties setting aside the refusal of the Speaker of Parliament to direct that a vote of no confidence in President Jacob Zuma be decided by ...
The Marikana Report: Some Justice, Part of the Truth and Many Unanswered Questions (Part II)

The Marikana Report: Some Justice, Part of the Truth and Many Unanswered Questions (Part II)

The factual context surrounding the Marikana massacre has been discussed before on this blog by Judge Dennis Davis. This post is the second of a two part series on the Marikana Report. In my last post I discussed the significance of ...
The Marikana Report: Some Justice, Part of the Truth and Many Unanswered Questions (Part I)

The Marikana Report: Some Justice, Part of the Truth and Many Unanswered Questions (Part I)

Almost three months after the Chair of the Marikana Commission of Inquiry delivered the final report to President Zuma, the report has been released. The context of the incident has been discussed before on this blog here. This post ...