[3] His order in that matter was upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeal in Harmony Gold v Free State Department of Water Affairs.
[1] In April 2018, Makgoka was one of nine candidates whom the Judicial Service Commission shortlisted and interviewed for possible permanent appointment to one of three vacancies in the Supreme Court of Appeal.
During his interview, he was asked about his impression of the level of collegiality in the Supreme Court of Appeal, and he expressed his support for gender-based affirmative action in the judiciary.
[7][8] The Judicial Service Commission recommended him for appointment, alongside Mahube Molemela and Ashton Schippers,[9] and the trio joined the bench on 1 June 2018.
[1] He has been the chancellor of the Anglican Diocese of Pretoria since 2012 and a member of the advisory board of Judges to the World Intellectual Property Organisation since 2020.
[1] Since 2019, he has been a member of the Judicial Conduct Committee of the Judicial Service Commission, in which capacity he served on the three-member tribunal that found Western Cape Judge President John Hlophe guilty of gross misconduct for attempting to improperly influence the views of Justices Chris Jafta and Bess Nkabinde.