Glenn Goosen

Glenn Graham Goosen (born 12 April 1962) is a South African judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal. He was formerly a judge of the Eastern Cape High Court from January 2012 until December 2022, when he was appointed to the Supreme Court of Appeal.

Before joining the bench, Goosen practised as an advocate in Port Elizabeth, gaining silk status in 2004. He was also a prominent student activist in the anti-apartheid movement and served briefly as director of investigations for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Early life and education Goosen was born on 12 April 1962 in Port Elizabeth (later renamed Gqeberha) in the Eastern Cape. He matriculated at St Patrick's Marist Brothers College in Port Elizabeth and went on to the University of Cape Town (UCT), where he completed a BA in 1984 and an LLB in 1988. He was a researcher at UCT's Centre for African Studies in 1987. At the time, Goosen remained active in the anti-apartheid movement, sitting on the executive of the United Democratic Front from 1989 and becoming active in the African National Congress when it was unbanned by the apartheid government in 1990. He resigned from the TRC in 1997 amid rumours of "personal differences" between him and TRC commissioner Dumisa Ntsebeza.

Eastern Cape High Court: 2011–2022 In October 2011, the Judicial Service Commission interviewed Goosen for a new vacancy in the Eastern Cape High Court, and on that occasion it recommended him for appointment. President Jacob Zuma confirmed his appointment with effect from 1 January 2012. In the High Court, his best-known judgement was Madzodzo v Minister of Basic Education, sometimes known as "the furniture case", which was handed down in February 2014 and which concerned the content of the right to basic education as enshrined in Section 29(1) of the Constitution. Goosen ruled that the Department of Basic Education had violated the right to basic education by failing to provide furniture to rural schools in the former Transkei. He agreed with the Legal Resources Centre that the right to education required the provision of "a range of educational resources", including school furniture, and that the government's budgetary constraints did not nullify learners' entitlement to effective relief.

Goosen later served lengthy stints as an acting judge in the Supreme Court of Appeal, first for a year between June 2020 and May 2021 and then for one term between June and September 2022.

In the fall of 2019, Goosen was selected to receive mediator training in the U.S. as part of South Africa's efforts to improve mediation opportunities via court-annexed processes. His cohort of judges included Audrey Ledwaba, Thoba Poyo-Dlwati, Nolwazi Mabindla-Boqwana, Raylene Keightley, Norman Davis, and Phineas Mojapelo (ret.). He and his U.S. trained judge colleagues were involved in the leadership of a national summit and mediation training for S.A. judges in Cape Town in July 2022. Court-annexed mediation was the focus of the meetings. The South African Judicial Education Institute (SAJEI) and several additional judges were prominent in that effort, including former Chief Justice Raymond Zondo and Francis Legodi (ret.), as well as faculty members and mediators from the U.S.--Judge Ben H. Hadfield (ret.), Nathan D. Alder, Velvet Rodriquez, and Stephen D. Kelson. C.J. Zondo expressed full support of court-based mediation stating that he would "like it to take off as soon as possible."

Supreme Court of Appeal: 2022–present In October 2022, Goosen was one of 11 candidates interviewed by the Judicial Service Commission for possible appointment to one of five permanent vacancies at the Supreme Court of Appeal. Although the National Association of Democratic Lawyers suggested that his elevation would result in an "over-representation of white men" on the Supreme Court, the Eastern Cape branch of Lawyers for Transformation pointed to his "impeccable credentials" in the anti-apartheid movement, In addition, both Deputy Chief Justice Mandisa Maya and Gauteng Judge President Dunstan Mlambo praised Goosen for having assisted the judiciary in transitioning to virtual hearings, The Judicial Service Commission selected him as one of five candidates suitable for appointment, and he joined the bench on 1 December 2022.

Academic activities Goosen has several academic publications and since 2008 has been an adjunct professor in public law at the Nelson Mandela University.

Personal life He is married to Therese Boulle and has three children.