10 of 2013) is an act of the Parliament of South Africa that restructured the court system.
The Superior Courts Bill was first introduced in 2003,[3] but it was opposed by members of the judiciary and the legal profession, as well as by opposition politicians, because they claimed that it weakened the independence of the judiciary by putting the administration of the courts under the control of the Minister of Justice.
The Superior Courts Bill was reintroduced in 2010, but this new version made the Chief Justice, rather than the Minister of Justice, responsible for the administration of the courts, allaying the fears about judicial independence.
[5][6] The new version of the bill was supported by the official opposition Democratic Alliance.
[6] The bill did encounter substantial opposition from interested parties in Grahamstown, because it originally proposed that the main seat of the Eastern Cape Division should be moved to Bhisho; this change was ultimately reversed and the main seat will remain at Grahamstown.