LCP4804
ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
PAST EXAM PACK QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
(2020 – 2014)
2020 MAY/JUNE EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
2020 SUMMARISED NOTES
DISCLAIMER: Extreme care has been used to create this document, however the contents are provided “as is” without any
representations or warranties, express or implied. This document is to be used for comparison, research and reference
purposes ONLY. Directly submitting and/or reselling/ distribution / reproduction any part of this document is not permitted.
, EXAMINATION PACK
ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
LCP4804
SOLUTIONS FOR PAST EXAM PAPERS
1|P a ge
,TABLE OF CONTENTS
Q: PAPER PAGE
MAY/JUNE 2020
OCT/NOV 2019
MAY/JUNE 2019
OCT/NOV 2018
MAY/JUNE 2018
2|P a ge
, LCP4804 – ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
MAY/JUNE 2020 EXAMINATION
QUESTION 1
(a) In terms of section 1 of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of
1998, customary law means the customs and usages traditionally observed
among the indigenous African peoples of South Africa and which form part of
the culture of those people.
It must be noted that the concept of customary law in South Africa consists of
two forms of customary law; that is, living customary law and official
customary law. Living customary law is distinguished from the common law
concept of custom. Living customary law consists of current practices that
have binding authority and that adapt to changing conditions. On the other
hand, official customary are codes of customary law and other legislation,
court precedents and textbooks, and this system of law rarely represents the
customary law of the people whose customary law it purports to be.
The nature of customary law was clearly explained in the case of Pilane v
Pilane where the court stipulated that customary law is a vital component of
our constitutional system, recognised and protected by the constitution, while
ultimately subject to its terms. The nature of customary law is as living body of
law, active and dynamic, with an inherent capacity to evolve keeping with the
changing lives of the people whom it governs.
In Shilubana v Nwamitwa the court emphasised the fact that customary law is
a living system of law, as such it was not bound by historical precedent. Its
flexibility allowed it to evolve as its community changed. The court further
redefined customary law as a system that reflected the current practices of
the community; that is; living customary law came to be defined with reference
3|P a ge
ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
PAST EXAM PACK QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
(2020 – 2014)
2020 MAY/JUNE EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
2020 SUMMARISED NOTES
DISCLAIMER: Extreme care has been used to create this document, however the contents are provided “as is” without any
representations or warranties, express or implied. This document is to be used for comparison, research and reference
purposes ONLY. Directly submitting and/or reselling/ distribution / reproduction any part of this document is not permitted.
, EXAMINATION PACK
ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
LCP4804
SOLUTIONS FOR PAST EXAM PAPERS
1|P a ge
,TABLE OF CONTENTS
Q: PAPER PAGE
MAY/JUNE 2020
OCT/NOV 2019
MAY/JUNE 2019
OCT/NOV 2018
MAY/JUNE 2018
2|P a ge
, LCP4804 – ADVANCED INDIGENOUS LAW
MAY/JUNE 2020 EXAMINATION
QUESTION 1
(a) In terms of section 1 of the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act 120 of
1998, customary law means the customs and usages traditionally observed
among the indigenous African peoples of South Africa and which form part of
the culture of those people.
It must be noted that the concept of customary law in South Africa consists of
two forms of customary law; that is, living customary law and official
customary law. Living customary law is distinguished from the common law
concept of custom. Living customary law consists of current practices that
have binding authority and that adapt to changing conditions. On the other
hand, official customary are codes of customary law and other legislation,
court precedents and textbooks, and this system of law rarely represents the
customary law of the people whose customary law it purports to be.
The nature of customary law was clearly explained in the case of Pilane v
Pilane where the court stipulated that customary law is a vital component of
our constitutional system, recognised and protected by the constitution, while
ultimately subject to its terms. The nature of customary law is as living body of
law, active and dynamic, with an inherent capacity to evolve keeping with the
changing lives of the people whom it governs.
In Shilubana v Nwamitwa the court emphasised the fact that customary law is
a living system of law, as such it was not bound by historical precedent. Its
flexibility allowed it to evolve as its community changed. The court further
redefined customary law as a system that reflected the current practices of
the community; that is; living customary law came to be defined with reference
3|P a ge
