ABSTRACT
Contemporary South African law is the product of its historical development. 1 Two main factors played a role in shaping South Africa’s legal system. First, the settlement of the white population more than 500 years ago introduced Western legal systems into South Africa. 2 To start with, the Dutch East India Company established itself in the Cape of Good Hope in 1652, bringing with it the law of the rulers of the province of Holland, which was Roman-Dutch law. 3 The replacement of Dutch rule by British rule in the 1800s saw the seepage of English principles into the legal system, though Roman-Dutch law remained the general law of the land to a large extent. 4
