Raylene May Keightley (born 19 November 1961) is a South African

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

of the Supreme Court of Appeal. She was appointed to the bench in the

Gauteng High Court The Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa is a superior court of law which has general jurisdiction over the South African province of Gauteng and the eastern part of North West province. The main seat of the division is at Pretoria, ...

in January 2016 after a career as a legal academic and practising lawyer. She was admitted as an attorney in 1986 and as an advocate in 2006. Born in the

Eastern Cape The Eastern Cape ( ; ) is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, and its largest city is Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth). Due to its climate and nineteenth-century towns, it is a common location for tourists. It is also kno ...

, Keightley began her career at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) (, ) is a public university, public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university status in 1918, making it the oldest univer ...

and

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), commonly known as Wits University or Wits, is a multi-campus Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg, South Africa. The universit ...

, where she taught law between 1988 and 1999. Thereafter she spent seven years at the Asset Forfeiture Unit of the

National Prosecuting Authority The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) is the agency of the South African Government responsible for state prosecutions. Under Section 179 of the South African Constitution and the National Prosecuting Authority Act of 1998, which establi ...

. From 2006 to 2015, she practised law at the

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

Bar, with a stint as the director of the Centre for Applied Legal Studies between 2008 and 2011. She was appointed to the bench by President

Jacob Zuma Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma (; born 12 April 1942) is a South African politician who served as the fourth president of South Africa from 2009 to 2018. He is also referred to by his initials JZ and clan names Nxamalala and Msholozi. Zuma was a for ...

in 2016 and was elevated to the Supreme Court by President

Cyril Ramaphosa Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa (born 17 November 1952) is a South African businessman and politician serving as the 5th and current President of South Africa since 2018. A former Anti-Apartheid Movement, anti-apartheid activist and trade union leade ...

in 2024.

Early life and education

Keightley was born on 19 November 1961 in

Kokstad Kokstad is a town in the Harry Gwala District Municipality of the KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Kokstad is named after the Griqua chief Adam Kok III who settled here in 1863. Kokstad is the capital town of the East Griqualand region, ...

in the former

Cape Province The Province of the Cape of Good Hope (), commonly referred to as the Cape Province () and colloquially as The Cape (), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa. It encompassed the old Cape Co ...

. She matriculated at Umtata High School in

Mthatha Mthatha ( , ), alternatively rendered Umtata, is the main city of the King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality in Eastern Cape province of South Africa and the capital of OR Tambo District Municipality. The city has an airport, previously known ...

and went on to the

University of Natal The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu- ...

, where she completed a BA and LLB in 1984. Between 1987 and 1988, she completed an LLM at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, winning

Gonville and Caius College Gonville and Caius College, commonly known as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348 by Edmund Gonville, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges an ...

's Sir William McNair Prize for the best LLM student.

Legal and academic career

From 1985 to 1986, between her LLB and her LLM, Keightley was a candidate attorney at the firm of Balsillie, Watermeyer and Cawood in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

; she was admitted as an attorney in 1986. Upon her return to South Africa from Cambridge in 1988, she joined the law faculty at the

, where she taught until 1995, first as a lecturer and then, from 1991, as a senior lecturer. In 1996, she moved to

, becoming a senior lecturer at the

's School of Law. She was promoted to professor in 1999 and also served as an assistant dean in that year. Thereafter, however, Keightley returned to legal practice. Between 1999 and 2001, she was senior state advocate in the Asset Forfeiture Unit of the

. In 2001, she was admitted as an

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. List of country legal systems, Different countries and legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a ba ...

of the

High Court of South Africa The High Court of South Africa is a superior court of law in South Africa. It is divided into nine provinces of South Africa, provincial divisions, some of which sit in more than one location. Each High Court division has general jurisdiction ov ...

and was promoted to the position of deputy director of Public Prosecutions in the Asset Forfeiture Unit. She left that job in 2003 to become the unit's regional head in Johannesburg. In July 2006, Keightley left the National Prosecuting Authority to serve her pupillage at the Johannesburg Bar. Between 2006 and 2015, she was a practising advocate at the bar, first at the Island Group of Advocates and then at Thulamela Chambers. At the same time, from 2008 to 2011, she returned to the University of the Witwatersrand to serve as the director of the university's Centre for Applied Legal Studies. She also served on several occasions as an acting judge in the

Gauteng Division The Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa is a superior court, superior court of law which has general jurisdiction over the South African province of Gauteng and the eastern part of North West (South African province), North West pro ...

of the High Court; she served on the bench, both in Johannesburg and in

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

, for four periods between October 2013 and August 2015.

Gauteng High Court: 2015–2024

In October 2015, the Judicial Service Commission shortlisted and interviewed Keightley for one of six permanent vacancies in the Gauteng High Court. The commission recommended her for appointment after the interviews were held, and in December, President

confirmed her appointment with effect from 1 January 2016. The following year, in October 2017, Keightley handed down a landmark ruling on the unconstitutionality of

corporal punishment A corporal punishment or a physical punishment is a punishment which is intended to cause physical pain to a person. When it is inflicted on Minor (law), minors, especially in home and school settings, its methods may include spanking or Padd ...

by parents, finding that neither religious defences nor the common-law defence of " reasonable chastisement" sufficed to overrule the

best interests of the child Best interests or best interests of the child is a child rights principle, which derives from Article 3 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which says that "in all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private ...

and justify corporal punishment. Her ruling was upheld by the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ru ...

in September 2019 in ''

Freedom of Religion South Africa v Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development ''Freedom of Religion South Africa v Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development and Others'' is a decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa which found that corporal punishment in the home is illegal. The court found that the c ...

''. Other notable rulings by Keightley include a July 2019 ruling which prohibited the application of set-off to credit agreements under the

National Credit Act Credit agreements in South Africa are regulated under the National Credit Act (NCA) No. 34 of 2005, which promotes responsible lending and protects consumers from unfair credit practices. Replacing the Credit Agreements Act of 1980, the NCA applie ...

, as well as an October 2022 ruling which reinstated

Mpho Phalatse Mpho Louisa Phalatse (born 7 November 1977) is a South African medical doctor and politician who was the Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. A member of the Democratic Alliance, she served in the position fr ...

as the

Mayor of Johannesburg The mayor of Johannesburg is the highest elected position in the city of Johannesburg, South Africa. Since 2000, they are the chief executive of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality council. On 16 August 2024, the council elected D ...

following an unconstitutional vote of no confidence. Keightley was an acting judge in the Supreme Court of Appeal for two terms between July 2023 and March 2024. During that time, the court heard an appeal of an

Equality Court The Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act, 2000 (PEPUDA or the Equality Act, Act No. 4 of 2000) is a comprehensive South African anti-discrimination law. It prohibits unfair discrimination by the government and by pri ...

decision which found that it was not

hate speech Hate speech is a term with varied meaning and has no single, consistent definition. It is defined by the ''Cambridge Dictionary'' as "public speech that expresses hate or encourages violence towards a person or group based on something such as ...

for the

Economic Freedom Fighters The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is a South African communist and black nationalist political party. It was founded by expelled former African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) president Julius Malema, and his allies, on 26 July 20 ...

to sing '

Dubul' ibhunu "''Dubul' ibhunu''" (), translated as shoot the Boer, kill the Boer or kill the farmer, is a controversial South African anti-Apartheid song. It is sung in Xhosa or Zulu. The song originates in the struggle against apartheid when it was first ...

'. Ahead of the appeal, the appellant, political lobby group

AfriForum AfriForum is a South African non-governmental organisation which mainly focuses on the interests of Afrikaners, a subgroup of the country's white population. AfriForum has been described as a "white nationalist, alt-right, and Afrikaner nation ...

, lodged a formal request that Keightley should recuse herself from the matter; according to AfriForum, Keightley had "demonstrated bias" against it in 2018, when Keightley, presiding in an unrelated High Court dispute, had urged AfriForum to consider its obligation to contribute to nation-building.

Supreme Court of Appeal: 2024–present

In May 2024, the Judicial Service Commission recommended Keightley for permanent elevation to the Supreme Court of Appeal. After her appointment was confirmed by President

, she joined the bench on 1 July 2024.

Personal life

Keightley is married to prominent Senior Counsel

Alan Dodson Alan Christopher Dodson SC (born 10 July 1960) is a South African lawyer who was a judge of the Land Claims Court from 1995 to 2000. He was also the chairperson of the United Nations's Housing and Property Claims Commission in Kosovo from 20 ...

, with whom she has three sons.

References

External links

Raylene May Keightley
at Supreme Court of Appeal
R. M. Keightley
at Judges Matter
Interview
with Womanity {{DEFAULTSORT:Keightley, Raylene Living people 1961 births University of Natal alumni Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge 21st-century South African judges 20th-century South African women lawyers 20th-century South African lawyers 21st-century South African women lawyers 21st-century South African lawyers South African women judges South African prosecutors Academic staff of the University of the Witwatersrand Academic staff of the University of Cape Town People from Kokstad Judges of the Gauteng High Court Judges of the Supreme Court of Appeal (South Africa)