How to Prepare an Equality Court Complaint in South Africa

Key takeaways

• Classify the conduct before choosing the Equality Court. PEPUDA is not a general court for every unfair event or constitutional complaint.
• Use the official Form 2 and attach a signed, paginated chronology if the form does not provide enough space.
• Name every respondent accurately and provide usable service details where available.
• Separate facts, source documents, witness knowledge, legal inferences and requested remedies.

1. Confirm that the Equality Court is the correct starting route

An Equality Court determines whether unfair discrimination, hate speech or harassment prohibited by PEPUDA has taken place. The Act binds the State and private persons, but section 5(3) excludes its application to a person and to the extent that the Employment Equity Act applies. Section 20 also allows the presiding officer to refer a matter to another institution, body, court, tribunal or forum that can deal with it more appropriately.

Start with the conduct and relationship rather than the label “human rights”.

The unfair-discrimination-at-work glossary helps identify the employment context. The equality glossary and Bill of Rights glossary provide the constitutional concepts without replacing the statutory classification.

The current hate-speech rule

The Constitutional Court in Qwelane v South African Human Rights Commission held that the former inclusion of “hurtful” in section 10 was unconstitutional. Parliament then replaced section 10 through the Judicial Matters Amendment Act 15 of 2023, effective 3 April 2024. The current PEPUDA text requires harmful speech or incitement of harm together with promotion or propagation of hatred, assessed objectively and on a prohibited ground.

Do not confuse that civil Equality Court provision with the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Act 16 of 2023. That separate Act creates criminal offences but section 12 says it commences only on a date fixed by presidential proclamation. The Department of Justice stated on 13 June 2026 that commencement still depended on finalised regulations. A complaint prepared in July 2026 must therefore not describe its proposed offences as already operative law.

Existing crimes, threats, violence and immediate risks still require their own assessment. Preserve the evidence and use the appropriate emergency or reporting channel without waiting for the Equality Court process.

2. Establish who may bring the complaint

Section 20 permits proceedings by:

• a person acting in their own interest;
• a person acting for someone who cannot act in their own name;
• a person acting as a member of, or in the interests of, a group or class;
• a person acting in the public interest;
• an association acting in the interests of its members; or
• the SAHRC or Commission for Gender Equality.

Form 2 separates a complainant acting personally from someone acting in another capacity. Where another person, association or body files, the form asks for the capacity in which that person acts and proof of that capacity. Prepare the authority, mandate, governing resolution, relationship evidence or other relevant proof rather than assuming that a statement of good intentions establishes standing.

Record any accessibility, interpreter, transport, safety or other practical requirement that may help the presiding officer decide how and where the matter should proceed. Form 2 expressly creates space for some of this information. Keep only what is relevant; do not put unnecessary health, identity or financial information into an annexure that may become part of a court file.

3. Identify the correct respondent and service information

The respondent is the person or organisation against whom the proceeding is instituted. A trading name, social-media handle, school name, government programme or building name may not identify the legal respondent.

For each proposed respondent, record:

1. the full individual or registered entity name;
2. the role of the person who acted and their connection to the organisation;
3. an identity, birth or registration number only where lawfully available and relevant;
4. a physical or business address at which process may be served;
5. verified contact details and the source from which each was obtained; and
6. whether the relief is sought against the actor, organisation, public body or more than one respondent.

Do not guess an entity name or copy personal data from an unverified directory. Company, non-profit, school, body-corporate, government-department and municipal identities can require different verification. Save the page, letter, contract, policy, invoice or official record that supports the selected name.

Form 2 asks for the respondent's service details. The regulations make the clerk responsible for notifying the respondent through the prescribed process, with service or delivery by a sheriff, clerk, registered post, fax, email with proof of receipt, or another method directed by the presiding officer. Do not privately confront or serve a respondent because an online checklist says to do so, particularly where there is intimidation, violence, a protection order or a safety plan.

4. Verify the court and place of filing

Every Division or local seat of the High Court is an Equality Court for its area of jurisdiction. Magistrates' Court Equality Courts and their areas or places of sitting are designated by Gazette notice. A 2019 designation notice replaced the earlier 2009 notice and covers district and regional civil divisions and their places of sitting.

The Department's public guide tells a complainant to approach the nearest Magistrates' Court and ask for the Equality Court clerk. Treat that as the first administrative contact, not a final jurisdiction opinion. Before travelling or lodging:

• call or visit the court office and confirm that an Equality Court clerk is available;
• confirm the physical place at which Form 2 should be lodged;
• describe where the parties live or operate and where the incident occurred;
• ask what copies, identification, annexures and commissioning arrangements the office currently requires;
• record the official's name, date, contact details and guidance; and
• obtain a stamped copy, court number or written receipt when the form is accepted.

The access to courts glossary explains the broader constitutional concept. It does not determine venue for the individual complaint.

5. Build a neutral chronology before completing Form 2

Write a chronology in a table before drafting the narrative. One row should contain one event.

Separate what the record proves from what the complainant infers. “The email says the application was rejected on 4 June” is different from “the application was rejected because of disability”. The second proposition requires evidence connecting the decision to the alleged ground.

For a pattern, include the incidents that demonstrate the pattern and explain their connection. Do not bury a decisive event inside pages of unrelated conflict. If a date is uncertain, say so and explain why. A chronology that changes without a recorded reason will create avoidable credibility and case-management problems.

6. Complete Form 2 field by field

Use the current Form 2 from the Department of Justice forms page or the copy supplied by the clerk. Do not rely on an unverified template downloaded from another website.

Part A: complainant details

Provide accurate identity, contact and service information for the complainant. State practical requirements that genuinely affect forum choice or participation, such as an interpreter or accessible venue. If disclosure of a home address creates a safety risk, obtain advice from the clerk or a legal practitioner before filing; do not simply omit a required field or publish a protected address.

Part B: representative or public-interest capacity

Complete this only where the proceeding is brought under section 20(1)(b) to (f). Identify the affected person, group or members, the filer's capacity and the supporting authority. Distinguish the person instituting proceedings from a lawyer or other person who may appear for the complainant.

Part C: respondent details

Create a separate, accurate entry for each respondent. Provide the best verified address at which court documents can be served and explain any genuine uncertainty in an annexure. Do not name a senior official merely because their title appears on a website; link each respondent to the alleged conduct or requested order.

Part D: person appearing for the complainant

If a representative will appear, provide the requested details and keep the mandate or authority. Regulation 8 allows a party to be represented by an attorney, advocate or another person of the party's choice, subject to the presiding officer's view of the suitability of a non-lawyer representative.

Part E: complaint and relief

This is the core of the form. State:

1. the material incidents and dates;
2. the act, omission, policy, rule, practice, condition, situation or words challenged;
3. the prohibited ground or PEPUDA provision relied on;
4. the right or protected interest allegedly affected and why;
5. the identity and role of witnesses;
6. the effect on the complainant or group;
7. the documents or other material attached; and
8. the specific assistance or court order requested.

Use numbered paragraphs and cross-reference annexures. If the form's space is insufficient, it permits an annexure, and each added page should be signed as the form directs. A complaint should be detailed enough for the respondent and court to understand the case but should not become an unfiltered archive.

Part F: institutions already approached

List the institution, complaint or case number, submission date, issue raised, response and current status. Attach the submitted version and response where relevant. Explain whether the process was internal, regulatory, ombud, SAHRC, Commission for Gender Equality, SAPS or another court process.

Do not imply that an earlier institution made a finding if it only acknowledged receipt, screened jurisdiction or closed the file administratively.

Part G: declaration or affidavit

Check every factual statement and annexure before completing the oath or affirmation process. Ask the clerk how the current office handles commissioning. Do not sign a blank form, alter a commissioned version without advice, or attach evidence that the deponent has not reviewed.

The Equality Court complaint pack can help organise the file structure, but the official form and court directions remain controlling.

7. Prepare an indexed evidence bundle

Create a read-only master folder and a working copy. Use consistent filenames, for example 01-form-2.pdf, 02-chronology.pdf, A1-policy.pdf and A2-email-export.pdf. Keep an index stating the document date, author, recipient, short description, page range and proposition for which it is included.

The bundle may include:

• the policy, rule, notice, advert, decision or communication challenged;
• original emails with headers, message exports and complete conversation context;
• the publication, audio, video, photograph or webpage in its original available format;
• access logs, application records, service records, invoices or correspondence showing the benefit or opportunity withheld;
• a comparator table recording genuine similarities and differences;
• accommodation requests and responses;
• witness names, contact details and a short note of what each directly perceived;
• proof of the effect, such as financial records, medical records or expert material where relevant and lawfully obtained;
• complaints already submitted and every acknowledgment, finding or referral; and
• proof supporting respondent identity, standing, authority and venue.

Do not edit a screenshot to improve its appearance, crop away context, forward intimate or medical material widely, log into another person's account, or record a private communication unlawfully. Keep originals and generate hashes or export logs where proportionate. Note who collected each item, when, from where and whether it is complete.

The constitutional-rights checklist can support a route-neutral index. The human dignity glossary helps explain the concept, but a dignity label does not replace evidence of the conduct and impact.

8. Match the evidence to the alleged PEPUDA cause

Unfair discrimination

Identify the direct or indirect act or omission, the burden imposed or benefit withheld, and the prohibited ground. For a listed ground, section 13 describes the burden once a prima facie case is made. For another ground, the complaint must address whether the discrimination causes or perpetuates systemic disadvantage, undermines dignity, or seriously affects equal enjoyment of rights in a comparable way.

Fairness remains contextual. Section 14 includes dignity, impact, patterns of disadvantage, nature and extent, systemic effect, purpose, proportionality, less restrictive means and reasonable steps to address disadvantage or accommodate diversity. MEC for Education: KwaZulu-Natal v Pillay demonstrates why a neutral-looking rule, the requested accommodation and the actual burden can matter. It does not make every refused exemption unfair discrimination.

Hate speech

Preserve the exact words and their full setting. Record who published or communicated them, to whom, by what channel, on what date, and whether the exhibit is complete. Identify the prohibited ground, the alleged harm or incitement of harm, and the alleged promotion or propagation of hatred.

Context may include audience, repetition, accompanying images, references understood by the audience and the social setting. Do not paraphrase disputed words as the primary exhibit. Do not rely only on the complainant's subjective reaction: the section uses an objective “reasonably construed” test. Qwelane and SAHRC obo South African Jewish Board of Deputies v Masuku show that the exact statutory elements and context must be applied rather than treating offensiveness as a substitute.

Harassment under PEPUDA

Record the unwanted conduct, its seriousness or persistence, its connection to sex, gender, sexual orientation or another prohibited ground, and how it is alleged to create a hostile, intimidating, degrading or humiliating environment or impair dignity. Preserve reports, messages, witnesses, requests for the conduct to stop and the response.

PEPUDA harassment, workplace harassment, the Protection from Harassment Act and domestic-violence protections have different definitions, procedures and remedies. More than one route may need protection, but one filing should not be assumed to perform the work of another.

9. Ask for relief that is connected to the evidence

Section 21 gives an Equality Court a broad list of possible orders after an inquiry. These include interim and declaratory orders, damages for proven loss or specified non-financial harm, restraint of discriminatory practices, steps to stop the conduct, access to an opportunity unfairly denied, reasonable accommodation, an unconditional apology, a policy audit, progress reports, costs and compliance with the Act.

State what practical result is sought and why the evidence supports it. Distinguish:

• immediate interim protection from final relief;
• an order stopping conduct from compensation for proven loss;
• individual correction from a systemic policy measure;
• an apology from an admission that the court has not yet made; and
• a civil PEPUDA remedy from a separate criminal, employment, administrative or delictual remedy.

Do not copy the entire statutory list into Form 2. A demand for every possible order can obscure the real objective. Quantify financial loss with records and explain the causal link. Damages, costs, an apology, an interdict or policy change are possible orders, not promised outcomes.

10. What happens after Form 2 is lodged

Under regulation 6, the clerk must notify the respondent within seven days after receiving Form 2 and invite a written response within ten days after the respondent receives the notice. The clerk then refers the material to the presiding officer after the response period. The presiding officer decides whether the Equality Court should hear the matter or refer it to an alternative forum.

If the court retains the matter, the clerk assigns a directions hearing. That hearing can organise issues such as the hearing date, interpreter, witnesses, assessors, discovery, evidence and other procedural directions. The regulations permit a written urgent application asking the presiding officer to depart from prescribed periods. Urgency is fact-specific and should be supported, not merely asserted.

Keep a process log containing:

• the lodged Form 2 and every annexure;
• the court stamp, case number and receipt date;
• the clerk's details and each communication;
• notices, proof of service or delivery, and the respondent's response;
• every direction, order and hearing date; and
• the date on which any referral to another forum was received and what that forum did.

Do not calculate the entire case duration from the short administrative periods in regulation 6. Availability, service, referral, directions, evidence, hearing time and appeals can affect the actual timeline.

11. Costs, representation, privacy and safety

Regulation 12 states that no court fee is payable to institute proceedings and that each party ordinarily bears their own costs unless the presiding officer directs otherwise. The court can make a costs order, including where a properly notified party fails to attend without reasonable excuse. Travel, copies, expert evidence, representation and related preparation costs are separate from the filing fee.

Legal representation is not a prerequisite. The clerk must provide prescribed assistance, particularly for an unrepresented person, and the SAHRC or Commission for Gender Equality may assist within their functions. Legal Aid South Africa lists Equality Court matters among the civil matters it may assist with, subject to qualification, means, merits, scope and exclusions.

Proceedings are ordinarily conducted in open court unless the court directs otherwise in the interests of justice. Address confidentiality before filing where the record contains a child's information, health records, sexual material, protected addresses, third-party personal information or evidence that may create a safety risk. Redaction, restricted access, closed proceedings or another protective step requires lawful, case-specific direction; do not assume privacy or unilaterally alter evidence.

Use the lawyer directory where respondent identity, jurisdiction, limitation, urgent relief, complex evidence, parallel proceedings or a material damages claim requires independent advice.

12. Final pre-filing review

Before lodging, confirm that:

• the Equality Court is the intended route and every competing forum has been checked;
• the current official Form 2 is complete;
• standing and representative authority are supported;
• every respondent is accurately identified with usable service information;
• the court, area of jurisdiction and place of filing have been confirmed;
• the chronology separates facts from inferences;
• each legal element is connected to identified evidence;
• annexures are relevant, legible, indexed, paginated and referred to in the complaint;
• requested relief is specific and evidence-linked;
• previous complaints and outcomes are described accurately;
• urgency, safety, privacy, accessibility and interpreter needs have been raised appropriately;
• the signed and commissioned version matches the reviewed version; and
• a complete stamped copy and process log will be retained.

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