The South African Constitution as an instrument of doing what is just, right and fair

Abstract

The South African Constitution creates rights and imposes obligations. However, it is not established that constitutional obligations include doing what is just, right and fair. This article sought to ascertain whether the Constitution binds South Africans to legally enforceable obligations to do what is just, right and fair. The article used the doctrinal legal research methodology, which entailed the analysis of primary and secondary sources of law such as the Constitution, case law, books and journal articles. The analysis showed that doing what is just, right and fair is legally mandated by the spirit of the Constitution, which is expressly and implicitly articulated in the preamble, the founding values and the Bill of Rights. The analysis further showed that the judiciary is at the epicentre of facilitating justice and ensuring that all public and private conduct is right and fair.