S v Zuma

Not to be confused with the Jacob Zuma rape trial.

S v Zuma and Others was the first case decided by the Constitutional Court of South Africa after it was established in 1995. The case dealt with a provision of the Criminal Procedure Act which required the defence in criminal cases to prove that a confession made before a magistrate was coerced, rather than requiring the state to prove that it was not coerced. The court held that this reverse onus provision was unconstitutional because it violated the right to a fair trial under section 25 of the Interim Constitution.

S v Zuma
Court	Constitutional Court of South Africa
Full case name	State v Zuma and Others
Decided	5 April 1995 (1995-04-05)
Citations	[1995] ZACC 1, 1995 (2) SA 642 (CC), 1995 (4) BCLR 401 (CC)
Case history
Prior action	Referral from Natal Provincial Division
Court membership
Judges sitting	Chaskalson P, Ackermann, Didcott, Kriegler, Langa, Madala, Mahomed, Mokgoro, O'Regan & Sachs JJ, Kentridge AJ
Case opinions
Decision by	Kentridge

External links

• Text of the judgment
• Official media summary