1.The decision of the Chief Justice that, in future, English will be the official language of record was not published in the Government Gazette.
I am not in a position to respond on behalf of the Chief Justice as to why it was considered not necessary to publish it in the Government Gazette, if it was considered as a decision falling under section 8(3) of the Superior Courts Act, 2013.
2. I am aware of the the decision of the Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) published in Government Gazette No. 24121 of 29 November 2002, in respect of Board Notice 99 of 2002;
The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development is in the process of developing a policy on the interpretation service which includes provisions on the language of court proceedings (langauge use), as well as a possible position on the language of record for the courts. This policy will inform legislative reform to determine the language of record for the courts, as well as the language of court proceedings.
3. and (4) See response in point (2) above on legislative reform. Additionally, any legislative proposal must consider and uphold the principle of separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary.