President Cyril Ramaphosa appoints Justice Raymond Zondo as Chief Justice

President Cyril Ramaphosa has, in accordance with Section 174(3) of the Constitution, decided to appoint Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo as the next Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa with effect from 1 April 2022. With Justice Zondo assuming the position of Chief Justice, the position of Deputy Chief Justice will become vacant. President Ramaphosa has accordingly indicated his intention, once the new Chief Justice assumes office, to nominate Justice Mandisa Maya for the position of Deputy Chief Justice. This nomination will be subject to the process outlined in Section 174(3) of the Constitution.
Justice Zondo was first appointed as a judge of the Labour Court in 1997 and was Judge President of the Labour and Labour Appeals courts between 2000 and 2010. He has been a judge of the Constitutional Court since 2012 and was appointed as Deputy Chief Justice in 2017. He holds a B Juris degree from the University of Zululand and obtained his LLB from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He also holds an LLM (cum laude) from the University of South Africa and another with a specialization in commercial law.