S v Mhlungu

S v Mhlungu and Others is a decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa in which the court interpreted a transitional provision in the Interim Constitution of South Africa relating to the handling of criminal cases that were pending when that constitution came into force on 27 April 1994. The ruling, handed down on 8 June 1995, held that such cases were subject to the human rights protections in Chapter 3 of the Interim Constitution despite a clause appearing to exclude them.

S v Mhlungu
Court	Constitutional Court of South Africa
Full case name	State v Mhlungu and Others
Decided	8 June 1995 (1995-06-08)
Citations	[1995] ZACC 4, 1995 (3) SA 867 (CC), 1995 (7) BCLR 793 (CC)
Case history
Prior action	Referral from Natal Provincial Division
Court membership
Judges sitting	Chaskalson P, Ackermann, Didcott, Kriegler, Langa, Madala, Mahomed, Mokgoro, O'Regan & Sachs JJ, Kentridge AJ
Case opinions
Decision by	Mahomed

References

• Fagan, Eduard (1996). "The Longest Erratum Note in History: S v Mhlungu and Others". South African Journal on Human Rights. 12: 79–89.
• Smith, Nicholas (1996). "The Purposes Behind the Words: S v Mhlungu and Others". South African Journal on Human Rights. 12: 90–98.

External links

• Text of the judgment