When is the deadline for defence in a minor civil action (magistrates court)?
The catalogue records a 28 days period from Service of the Claim. This draft page remains free only until its source, worked example and limits are reviewed.
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Calculation basis and source
- Period
- 28 days
- Trigger
- Service of the Claim
- Counting
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- r 12.1(2)(c).
- IMPORTANT: the UCR r 2.2(5) Christmas hiatus (time not running between 25 December and 1 January) is expressly headed "Supreme Court and District Court" and, by r 1.6(2), does NOT apply to a minor civil action in the Magistrates Court. Corrected on verification: the researched entry said 'Chapter 22 rules apply to minor civil actions'. Minor civil actions are governed by CHAPTER 24 (Minor Civil Actions - Magistrates Court, rr 331.1 onwards); Chapter 22 is 'Specific kinds of proceedings - Magistrates Court' and is a different body of rules. Rule 1.6(4) provides that the Rules 'do not apply to a minor civil action in the Magistrates Court unless Chapter 24 otherwise provides', and r 331.3 lists the rules in other Chapters that do apply, beginning at r 331.3(a) with Chapter 1 (general rules), which is where the r 2.2 counting rule sits, so r 2.2(1) to (4) do govern the computation of this period. Source: Uniform Civil Rules 2020 (SA) rr 1.6(2), 1.6(4), 331.3 and the Chapter 24 heading, consolidation current to 15 March 2026 published by the Courts Administration Authority.