SA courts are easy to reach, but most citizens still don’t trust the justice system
More than 70% said they would welcome a former prisoner into their community, place of worship, or as a neighbour, Statistics South Africa found.
Image: Freepik
For most South Africans, reaching a court is not the problem. Almost two-thirds 61% say it takes less than 30 minutes to get to a magistrate’s court.
Yet satisfaction with the system is far from universal.
Only 44.8% of respondents in Statistics South Africa’s Governance, Public Safety and Justice Survey 2024/25 said they were happy with how courts handle offenders, noting that “sentences are appropriate to the crime”.
Courtrooms see South Africans for many reasons.
Around 22% attend as the person bringing charges or litigant, up from 16.6% in 2018/19. Nearly 21% go as the accused.
Attendance to support family or friends has dropped from 29.2% to 23%. Civil cases such as custody, divorce, or eviction are on the rise.
Representation shapes the courtroom experience. In 2024/25, 62.7% represented themselves, down from 69.3% in 2018/19.
Legal Aid South Africa usage rose slightly from 18.3% to 20.8%. Private lawyer representation fell from 15.5% to 12.9%. About 17% were represented by state prosecutors.
Satisfaction varies. Those with private lawyers are happiest at 94.8%.
Self-represented individuals are also much happier with themselves than before, rising from 86.1% to 92.9%. Paralegal clients were the least satisfied at 75%.
Yet engagement with the justice system is limited. Fewer than 5% of South Africans aged 16 and older reported going to court in 2024/25.
Over two-fifths of household heads said they never discuss court matters with family or friends, a trend unchanged since 2018/19.
In the past year, nearly one in five households in the Northern Cape reported visiting a court – the highest rate in the country.
On rehabilitation and parole, around 3% of households said they were victims of crimes where the perpetrator was jailed in 2024/25.
Of these, only a third of offenders were released on parole. Less than 60% of households said they were informed of the parole hearing.
Nearly one-fifth of those notified did not attend. About 35% of households were satisfied with parole decisions. Satisfaction with offender rehabilitation was higher at 44%.
Male-headed households were generally more open to reintegration.
More than 70% said they would welcome a former prisoner into their community, place of worship, or as a neighbour.
Men were also more likely than women to offer employment to, or marry, a former prisoner.
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