Frans Legodi

Malesela Francis Legodi (born 9 July 1954) is a South African retired judge of the High Court of South Africa. He was the first Judge President of the Mpumalanga Division of the High Court from August 2017 to August 2023. He joined the bench in October 2004 as a puisne judge of the Gauteng Division. Before that, he was a practising attorney in Mpumalanga.

Early life and education Legodi was born on 9 July 1954 on a farm near Ga-Maphoto in the former Northern Transvaal. He was the seventh of eight siblings and grew up in the nearby township of Ga-Maja outside Polokwane. He matriculated in 1975 at Mokomene High School in Soekmekaar and went on to the University of the North the following year. Legodi took office on 1 October 2004 and sat in the Pretoria High Court. Among other prominent matters, Legodi presided in the General Council of the Bar's application to have prosecutors Nomgcobo Jiba and Lawrence Mrwebi struck from the roll of advocates due to deficient conduct. Legodi granted the bar's application, but his order was overturned by the Supreme Court of Appeal.

In addition to his service in the High Court, Legodi was appointed as the chairperson of the Military Appeal Court in 2007 and as the chairperson of the Magistrates Commission in 2010. although the Presidency said that he had retired for confidential personal reasons, the Mail & Guardian reported that he had been sidelined by the commission's chairperson, Willie Seriti.

Judicial Service Commission nominations During his 13 years in the Gauteng High Court, Legodi was unsuccessfully shortlisted for promotion on four occasions. He was one of 24 candidates interviewed for four vacancies in the Constitutional Court in September 2009; one of three candidates interviewed for the position of Judge President of the Gauteng High Court in April 2012 (a position awarded to Dunstan Mlambo); one of seven candidates interviewed for the position of Judge President of the Limpopo High Court in April 2015 (a position awarded to Ephraim Makgoba); and one of seven candidates shortlisted for two vacancies in the Supreme Court of Appeal in March 2016, though, in that case, he withdrew his candidacy before the interviews were held.

Mpumalanga High Court: 2017–2023 In 2016, when the Gauteng High Court established a civil circuit court in Mpumalanga Province, Legodi began spending a large amount of time in the province ahead of the establishment of a free-standing Mpumalanga Division of the High Court. In April 2017, he was the sole candidate interviewed by the Judicial Service Commission for the position of Judge President of the Mpumalanga Division. The Judicial Service Commission recommended him for appointment, and President Zuma confirmed his appointment with effect from 1 August 2017. The Mpumalanga Division held its first sitting in Mbombela in May 2019, with Legodi presiding over two criminal matters, and President Cyril Ramaphosa officially opened the new court in November 2019.

Legodi retired from the judiciary on 21 August 2023. He is commemorated by a statue in the Mbombela High Court building.

Personal life He is married to M. M. Legodi, with whom he has three adult children.