- The court found that Tjiroze failed to prove his Namibian B Juris degree was equivalent to a South African LLB.
- It held that no certification was provided confirming the qualification is “equal to or superior” to a local degree.
- The court also found that he is not a fit and proper person to be admitted as an advocate.
The High Court in Johannesburg has dismissed Hitjevi Obafemi Tjiroze’s application for admission as an advocate, after finding he could not establish that his Namibian B Juris degree was equivalent to a South African LLB.
The court held that the law demands clear certification from a recognised faculty of law confirming that a foreign qualification is “equal or superior” to a South African LLB, and that no such certification had been provided.
Acting Judge S Wilson stated, “Neither of them had said, in terms, that the syllabus and standard of instruction leading to the award of Mr Tjiroze’s B Juris degree are equal or superior to those required for the LLB at a university in the Republic.”
This gap proved decisive. Without recognised equivalence, Tjiroze could not clear the threshold requirement for admission.
Qualification requirement not met
Tjiroze relied on his three-year B Juris degree from the University of Namibia, but the court found that the supporting material he presented fell short of the statutory standard.
Judge Wilson explained, “On its face, [the material] certified that Mr Tjiroze’s B Juris degree was either the equivalent of a two-year LLB at Monash University, or counted towards some of the credits necessary to obtain that degree.”
The court was clear that this fell well short of what the law requires. Judge Wilson held, “That ambiguity aside, neither Dr Mongalo of the Wits Law School nor Ms Ferndale, Registrar of the Independent Institute of Education Monash South Africa, had provided the required certification.”
The court said partial equivalence or credit recognition is not enough. What the law demands is explicit confirmation that the qualification meets or exceeds the standard of a South African LLB.
Fitness concerns remain decisive
In addition to the qualification failure, the court found that Tjiroze was not a fit and proper person to be admitted as an advocate. This finding was grounded in earlier adverse remarks made by the Constitutional Court regarding his conduct in litigation.
Judge Wilson recorded that the Constitutional Court had found that Tjiroze “had committed an abuse of process… and had made defamatory remarks about a judge of this court.”
The court found that Tjiroze had failed to properly address those findings. Judge Wilson stated, “Mr Tjiroze had failed adequately to address findings that the Constitutional Court had made against him.” The court went further, finding that the problem was not historical but ongoing.
Judge Wilson held that Tjiroze “had failed to appreciate the full import of the Constitutional Court’s criticisms,” and that he “had again engaged in the same sort of inappropriate conduct of which the Constitutional Court had disapproved.”
The court emphasised that fitness to practise is a continuing requirement. Judge Wilson stated, “Since fitness to practice is a continuing requirement, Mr Tjiroze had to show both that he was a fit and proper person on 31 October 2018, and that he remained fit and proper at the time of his application for admission.”
The court found that this standard had not been met.
No basis to revisit refusal
The court found that both the qualification shortfall and the fitness concerns had already been fully considered, and that neither had been resolved.
Judge Wilson stated, “Mr Tjiroze’s challenge to Wright J’s decision is res judicata, and cannot be revived by way of a rescission application.”
The court also confirmed there was no procedural defect that could justify setting aside the original order. Judge Wilson stated, “Rescission is a wholly different remedy from appeal.”
The application was dismissed, with costs awarded on the attorney-and-client scale.
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