South Africa: Johannesburg Labour Court, Johannesburg

THE LABOUR COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA

HELD AT JOHANNESBURG

                                                                                   Case no: JS 1002/09

Not reportable

In the matter between:

LEAVE TO APPEAL JUDGMENT

LAGRANGE J

[1] This is an application for leave to appeal against a ruling dismissing an application for condonation for the late referral of the applicants’ retrenchment dispute. The matter had been set down for trial in April this year and the applicants had failed to file an application for the late filing of their statement of case despite being aware since 17 February 2015, in terms of a constitutional court judgement that it was necessary for them to obtain late condonation for the referral.

[2] In essence, the grounds of appeal reiterates the reasons why the applicants did not originally refer their dispute timeously and why they failed to apply for condonation for the late referral when they did so. In my judgement, I accepted that until the Constitutional Court decision of 17 February 2015, their misconception about the need to file a condonation application might be excused, but it did not excuse the subsequent inaction in the absence of an exceptionally good justification for not doing anything after the Constitutional Court judgement.

[3] In their grounds of appeal, the applicants fail to provide any good reason why the court was wrong in its evaluation of the absence of any good reason for the applicants failure to file a condonation application as soon as possible after the judgement on 17 February 2015, or why the court’s assessment of their prospects of success was wrong.

[4] In terms of section 17 (1) (h) (i) of the Superior Courts Act, 10 of 2013, aside from other circumstances which are not applicable in this case, leave to appeal may only be granted if a judge is of the opinion that the appeal would have “a reasonable prospect of success” that does not mean that merely because another court might come to a different conclusion leave to appeal should be granted. The court must also consider if that is not merely a theoretical possibility but there is some likelihood that this would be the case. I am not satisfied for the reasons mentioned above that the applicants have succeeded in establishing that there is a reasonable prospect of success on appeal.

Order

[5] The application for leave to appeal is dismissed with costs.

_______________________

Lagrange J

Judge of the Labour Court of South Africa

(In Chambers)

4 October 2016