Described as a vital resource for people in need of free early-stage legal assistance, the pro bono help desk has opened its doors at the Western Cape High Court.
“When we spoke about it a few months ago, it looked like a dream and something so far,” said Western Cape judge president Nolwazi Mabindla-Boqwana at the soft launch on Wednesday.
“The cost of litigation and the lack of economic resources for our people has become such a hurdle and a barrier for people to come to the courts and access justice.
“People are inhibited from asserting or defending their rights because they don't have money, they cannot afford to come to court, and some of them end up abandoning their claims, or they agree to settle [when] they ought not to have only because they know no better.”
The initiative is the result of a partnership between the Western Cape High Court and Advocates for Transformation, the National Association of Democratic Lawyers, South African Women Lawyers Association, Black Lawyers Association, ProBono.org, Legal Aid South Africa, the Cape Bar, Cape Town Attorneys Association and the Legal Practice Council.
Judge Mabindla-Boqwana said being a lawyer was also about giving back to society and the spirit of ubuntu. She stressed it was crucial to have legal professionals from various organisations involved with the help desk.
“Many of us became lawyers because we wanted to make a difference. This is one of the ways we can make a difference to our society and the people of the Western Cape.
“Many more people come to our courts because of the foreclosures, as well as evictions and they don’t have anybody [to represent them].
“To have somebody there who can be able to take on [these] matters and assist people who require legal representation is something that would be very helpful,” she added.
ProBono.org's provincial manager Masi Ncube said his organisation's role was to connect legal practitioners with those who cannot afford legal services.
“This is something that we do in various communities as well as in various government institutions.” As examples, he cited the Master’s Office and the Deeds Office as examples.
Ncube said the desk was intended to help speed up the court process. He added that court procedures could be “quite complex, not always user-friendly, and they require legal representation for most parts”.
He said because of this, ordinary people without legal backgrounds could get “lost and feel that they are unable to attain justice because they might not be able to afford exorbitant legal fees”.
The desk aims to make access to justice more tangible. “Our role [as an organisation] is to broaden access to justice, but we do so in collaboration with private legal practitioners.
“We provide platforms like this help desk, where lawyers are able to do 40 hours of community service. In addition, we're able to make sure people are able to obtain dignified professional, high-quality legal services at accessible institutions.
“We are quite emboldened by our mission to ensure that justice prevails.” Ncube said they appreciated support from the high court and other organisations involved.
“I'm keen to see various legal practitioners from all over the province showing up and showing support for those who can't afford legal services,” he told TimesLIVE Premium.
Advocates for Transformation this week said the desk was a step towards meaningful access to justice.
“Too many people in South Africa are denied justice — not because they lack a legal claim, but because they cannot afford representation or navigate a complex legal system. These systemic barriers are especially pronounced in the Western Cape, where spatial exclusion, gender-based violence, poverty and the marginalisation of migrants and informal workers persist. But this is a national crisis — and it requires national solutions,” the organisation said.
They said the help desk not only reflected a “constitutional imperative” but also a “statutory, professional, and international duty”.
The Legal Practice Act and its Regulations on Community Service require practising legal practitioners to perform a minimum of 40 hours of community service annually, and candidate attorneys and pupils to perform eight hours of supervised service.
The help desk will be open on Wednesdays and Fridays from 9am until 12.30pm. The official launch is expected to take place soon.
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