Caroline Nicholls

Caroline Elizabeth Heaton Nicholls (born 28 November 1956) is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. Formerly a human rights lawyer, she was a judge of the Johannesburg High Court from September 2009 until June 2019, when she was appointed to the Supreme Court of Appeal.

Early life and education Nicholls was born on 28 November 1956 in present-day KwaZulu-Natal. She matriculated at St. Anne's College in 1973 and attended the University of Cape Town, where she completed a BA in 1976 and an LLB in 1978. In the latter case, she instructed George Bizos on behalf of the South African Communist Party and the family of the party's assassinated leader, Chris Hani. She joined the National Association of Democratic Lawyers in 1988 and served on its national executive committee between 2001 and 2003. After completing the programme later that year, she was invited to serve as an acting judge in the Johannesburg High Court. ordered CSR E-loco to disclose its beneficial ownership to amaBhungane journalists in 2013, and ordered M-Net to reinstate Gareth Cliff as a judge on Idols South Africa in 2016.

Nicholls also served lengthy stints as an acting judge in higher courts. She was an acting judge in the Supreme Court of Appeal twice between October 2016 and November 2018, Later, between February and June 2019, she acted in the Constitutional Court. During her interview in April, Nicholls said that she had been "made to feel unwanted, incompetent and incapable" during her first acting stint on the Supreme Court, but that the environment had improved during the tenure of Judge President Mandisa Maya.

The Judicial Service Commission recommended Nicholls's appointment, which was confirmed by President Cyril Ramaphosa later the same year. She joined the Supreme Court of Appeal on 1 June 2019. While serving on the bench, she is also an assistant vice-president at the South African chapter of the International Association of Women Judges.

Personal life She is married to Gcina Malindi, with whom she has three daughters. She met Malindi, who is a lawyer and former anti-apartheid activist, when she represented him at the Delmas Treason Trial of 1985.