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100 S. African L.J. 278 (1983)
Locus Standi in Judicio or Ubi Ius Ibi Remedium

handle is hein.journals/soaf100 and id is 280 raw text is: LOCUS STANDI IN JUDICIO OR UBI IUS IBI REMEDIUM The expression 'locus standi in judicio' is employed fairly regu- larly, yet it seldom attracts any attention, for the meanings generally assigned to it are well known to the majority of lawyers. It seems, however, that both the expression and its contents are somewhat vague and ill defined. It is proposed in this article to examine exactly what this concept means and to find a systematic way of dealing with it. Among the recent cases on the subject, there are two that are of particular interest; it is with these in mind that the present discussion is under- taken. They are Christian League of Southern Africa v Rail1 and Bamford v Minister of Community Development and State Auxiliary Services,2 both of which received wide publicity when they came before the court. HISTORY With the resources at my disposal, I have been unable to trace any references to the precise phrase 'locus standi in judicio' in the Corpus Iuris Civilis or other Roman writings. It does occur, however, in the writings of Huber; he speaks of it as follows: 'In the case of both plaintiff and defendant, it is necessary that they should have a locus standi in judicio, that is, a capacity to appear before the law, such as is not possessed by all those who are not their own men, like children under seven years, and insane persons, who cannot appear any way, even when supported by their tutors. 3 He also refers to minors, prodigals and married women as those who cannot stand alone in judicio and require the assistance of their guardians.4 Professor R W Lee, although not dealing with the subject as such, touches on it in connection with his discussion of persons. He says: 'A minor has no persona standi in judicio. He must therefore be repre- sented or assisted by his guardian in any proceedings to which he is a party, whether as plaintiff or defendant.'5 For this proposition, he relies on the writings of Grotius, Van der Keessel and Van der Linden, but the former two do not seem to refer to the phrase in 1981 (2) SA 821 (0). - 1981 (3) SA 1054 (C). H-edendaegse Rechtsgeleerdheyt 4.15.39 (Gane's translation). 4 4.14.17. An Introduction to Roman-Dutch Law 5 ed (1953) 109. 278

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