Impala Bafokebg Resources (Pty) Ltd v National Union of Mineworkers and Others (J1774/23) [2024] ZALCJHB 31 (7 February 2024)
The court found that the order issued was interim in nature, with a return date set for further proceedings, and did not constitute a final judgment or order. As section 166(1) of the Labour Relations Act only permits appeals against final judgments or orders, the interim order is not appealable. Consequently, the...
Source-derived case information.
- Citation
- [2024] ZALCJHB 31
- Parties
- Applicant: Impala Bafokeng Resources (Pty) Ltd; Respondent: National Union of Mineworkers; Respondent: Individuals listed in Annexure 'A' to the Notice of Motion; Respondent: Individuals listed in Annexure 'B' to the Notice of Motion
- Court
- Labour Court Johannesburg
- Jurisdiction
- South Africa
- Case Number
- J1774/23
- Procedural Posture
- Leave to Appeal / Application for Leave to Appeal Against Interim Order
- Outcome
- Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
- Judges
- Prinsloo
- Legal Topics
- Leave to Appeal, Final Vs Interim Orders, Labour Relations Act, Appealability
Source-derived case record
Summary, issues, holding and outcome
More case intelligence is available
Unlock the full research layer for this judgment.
Parties
Impala Bafokeng Resources (Pty) Ltd
Applicant
National Union of Mineworkers
Respondent
Individuals listed in Annexure 'A' to the Notice of Motion
Respondent
Individuals listed in Annexure 'B' to the Notice of Motion
Respondent
Procedural Posture
Leave to Appeal / Application for Leave to Appeal Against Interim Order
Legal Issues
- 1 Whether the interim order issued by the Labour Court is appealable under section 166(1) of the Labour Relations Act.
- 2 Whether the application for leave to appeal meets the statutory requirements for appealability.
Ratio Decidendi
The court found that the order issued was interim in nature, with a return date set for further proceedings, and did not constitute a final judgment or order. As section 166(1) of the Labour Relations Act only permits appeals against final judgments or orders, the interim order is not appealable. Consequently, the application for leave to appeal does not meet the statutory requirements and must be dismissed.
Court Disposition
Application for leave to appeal dismissed.
Orders
- The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
Full Case Text
Judgment text and source record
35 paragraphs
THE LABOUR COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA. JOHANNESBURG
Not reportable
Case no: J 1774/23
In the matter between:
IMPALA BAFOKENG RESOURCES (PTY) LTD Applicant
And
NATIONAL UNION OF MINEWORKERS
First Respondent
THE INDIVIDUALS LISTED IN ANNEXURE “A”
TO THE NOTICIE OF MOTION Second
to 2072 Respondent
THE INDIVIDUALS LISTED IN ANNEXURE “B”
TO THE NOTICIE OF MOTION 2073
to 2076 Respondent
Decided: In Chambers
Delivered: 07 February 2024
This judgment was handed down electronically by circulation to the parties' representatives by email. The date for hand-down is deemed
to be on 07 February 2024
JUDGMENT: APPLICATION FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL
PRINSLOO, J
[1] The Second to 2076th Respondent applied for leave to appeal against an order handed down on 21 December 2023. The application for leave to appeal is
unopposed.
[2] I have considered the grounds for appeal and I do not intend to repeat those herein.
The test for leave to appeal
[3] It is trite that there is no automatic right of appeal against a judgment of the Labour Court. This much is clear from section 166(1)
of the Labour Relations Act[1] (LRA) which provides that any party to any proceedings before the Labour Court may apply for leave to appeal to the Labour Appeal Court against any final judgment or final order of the Labour Court. In order to be entitled to leave to appeal, an applicant in an application for leave to appeal must satisfy this Court that there is a reasonable prospect that another court could come to a different conclusion[2].
[4] Section 166(1) of the LRA makes it clear that a final judgment or order is appealable.
[5] In casu an interim order was issued, with a return date of 18 March 2024. The merits of the application were not finally decided and no final judgment or order was granted. As a result, the provisions of section 166(1) do not apply and the order granted is not appealable.
[6] In the premises, the following order is made:
Order
1. The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.
Connie Prinsloo
Judge of the Labour Court of South Africa
[1] No. 66 of 1995, as amended.
[2] See: Woolworths Ltd v Matthews [1999] 3 BLLR 288 (LC).