Position, academic and professional qualifications

Professor Trynie Boezaart (previously Davel) is an emeritus professor in the Department of Private Law, and holds the degrees BA (Law), LLB (cum laude) and LLD from the University of Pretoria. Her LLD thesis is titled “Die dood van ‘n broodwinner as skadevergoedingsoorsaak” (“The death of a breadwinner as a cause of damages”).

Academic & professional experience

Boezaart was a prosecutor in the Department of Justice and a lecturer at the University of South Africa, before joining the University of Pretoria in 1980. Professor Boezaart founded the Centre for Child Law in 1998. The Centre developed into a multi-disciplinary, internationally recognised Centre of Expertise. The main focus of the Centre is impact litigation as a strategy to enforce and promote children’s rights. Professor Boezaart stepped down as the Director of the Centre when she was appointed as the Head of the Department of Private Law in 2008. She held this position for two consecutive terms. She also served as an acting judge in the GNP division of the High Court during 2008. Her focus is on her research and she holds a B2 NRF rating.

Teaching activities

Boezaart teaches the Law of Delict (DLR 320) and Child Law (KID 410) at undergraduate level. She initiated the Master's degree in Child Law, first as a single module for the coursework LLM degree in Private Law and since 2000 as a fully-fledged LLM degree. She coordinates one of the modules thereof. Several doctoral students have graduated under her supervision. She and one of her former LLD students, Prof Ann Skelton, received the coveted Mellon Foundation Award for research concerning the influence of the concept of restorative justice in the child justice system in South Africa. One of her former doctoral students, Prof Rushiela Songca, was the Executive Dean of the College of Law at Unisa.

Representative publications

• Skadevergoeding aan Afhanklikes (1987) Digma: Roodepoort
• “The African Charter, family law and children’s rights” 2002 De Jure 281-296
• “Impact litigation as a tool to transform society and realise the most basic fundamental rights of women and children” 2006 (1) Fundamina 120-131
• “The child’s right to legal representation in divorce proceedings” in Nagel (ed) Gedenkbundelvir JMT Labuschagne LexisNexis Butterworths: Durban (2006) 15-30
• “Best interests of the child:  A conceptualisation and guidelines in the context of education” in Jones-Parry R (ed) Commonwealth Education Partnerships 2007 Nexus Strategic Partnerships:  Cambridge, UK (2007) 222-226
• Chapter 2: “General Principles” in Davel and Skelton (eds) Commentary on the Children’s Act Juta & Co Ltd: Cape Town (2007, updated in 2012) 2-1 to 2-36
• “AIDS orphans and children’s rights” (with U Mungar) 2007 THRHR 65-83
• “Intercountry Adoption from an African Perspective” in Sloth-Nielsen (ed) Children’s Rights in Africa A Legal Perspective Ashgate Publishers (2008) 257-277
• “Finding the perfect balance: The challenge for contemporary private law” in Boezaart & De Kock (eds) Vita perit, labor non moritur Liber memorialis PJ Visser, LexisNexis Butterworths (2008) 145-155
• “Some comments on the interpretation and application of section 17 of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005” 2008 De Jure 245-254
• “Evolving family forms and the duty of support in South African Law” (with June Sinclair) in Verschraegen B (ed) Family Finances Jan Sramek Verlag (2009) 85-97
• “Poverty, welfare and the family:  South Africa’s miracle transition at risk” 2009 The International Survey of Family Law 455-467 (with June Sinclair)
• “The Children’s Act:  a valuable tool in realising the rights of children with disabilities” 2011 THRHR 264-279 available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=2016861
• “Section 14 of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 and the child’s capacity to litigate” (with DW de Bruin) 2011 De Jure 416-438
• “From pillar to post:  Legal solutions for children with debilitating conduct disorder” (with Ann Skelton) in Grobbelaar-Du Plessis and Van Reenen (eds) Aspects of Disability law in Africa PULP (2011) 107-131
• “Protecting the reproductive rights of children and young adults with disabilities: The roles and responsibilities of the family, the state, and judicial decision-making” 2012 (vol 26) Emory International Law Review 101-118 available at http://www.law.emory.edu/fileadmin/journals/eilr/26/26.1/Boezaart.pdf
• “The child’s objection and the Child Abduction Convention: Lessons from South Africa” in Kierkegaard (ed) Law, Governance and World Order IAITL (2012) 259-273
• “A Constitutional Perspective on the Rights of Children with Disabilities in an Educational Context” 2012 SAPL 455-475
• -“Sterilization of children and young people with disabilities: Back to our roots or forward to the courts?” in Sylvia Kierkegaard (ed) Law and Practice Critical Analysis and Legal Reasoning IAITL (2013) 531-543
• -“The role of a curator ad litem and children’s access to the courts” 2013 De Jure 707-726 available at http://www.dejure.up.ac.za/images/files/vol46-3-2013/Chapter%203.pdf
• -“Building bridges: African customary family law and children's rights” 2013 (6 no 4) International Journal of Private Law 395-417 available at http://www.inderscience.com/jhome.php?jcode=ijpl or http://www.inderscience.com/info/inarticletoc.php?jcode=ijpl&year=2013&vol=6&issue=4
• -“Listening to the child's objection” 2013 (part 3) New Zealand Law Review 357-372
• -“The position of minor and dependent children of divorcing and divorced spouses or civil union partners” in Jacqueline Heaton (ed) The Law of Divorce and Dissolution of Life Partnerships in South Africa Juta (2014) 171-227
• -“The legislative framework regarding bullying in South African schools” 2014 (vol 17 no 6) PER 2667-2702 available at http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/pelj.v17i6.12 (with A Laas)
• -“‘Wrongful life’” – The Constitutional Court paved the way for law reform” 2015 vol 26 no 2 Stell LR 399-423
• -“Mediese nalatigheid, ‘n kind met gestremdheid en onregmatige lyding in die Suid-Afrikaanse deliktereg” in Potgieter J, Knobel J en Jansen R-M (eds) Essays in Honour of Johann Neethling (2015) LexisNexis 93-105
• Law of Persons and Personereg 6^th ed (2016) Juta & Co, Ltd: Claremont
• Law of Persons Sourcebook 6^th ed (2016) Juta & Co, Ltd: Claremont
• “How unique can a baby switching case be?” 2016 (1) International Family Law Journal 25-29
• “Article 13 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities: Does the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 support access to justice for children with disabilities” (with EI Carter) in 2016 THRHR 248-260
• “Baby switching: What is best for the baby?” in Elaine E Sutherland and Lesley-Anne Barnes Macfarlane (eds) Implementing Article 3 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child: Best Interests, Welfare and Well-being (2016) 180-196 Cambridge University Press
• “Child law, the child and South African private law” in Boezaart (ed) Child Law in South Africa 2^nd ed (2017) Juta: Claremont 3-37
• “The socio-economic rights of children with disabilities in South Africa: A comparison of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities” (with Zita Hansungule) 2017 African Dissability Rights Yearbook PULP available at http://www.andry.up.ac.za
• “Toerekeningsvatbaarheid van kinders in die Suid-Afrikaanse deliktereg” 2017 (Special edition) TSAR Liber Amicorum Essays in Honour of JC Sonnekus 68-81

Areas of specialisation

Boezaart's main fields of interest are Child Law, the Law of Delict and the Law of Persons.

Academic and professional memberships

Boezaart is an advocate of the High Court of South Africa. She is a member of the International Society of Family Law. She served as a member of the International Programme Committee of the 4^th International Conference on Private Law (IPL) in Bangkok, Thailand in November 2013 and on the Board of the Centre of Child Law. She is on the steering committee and participates in the Convention on the Rights of the Child – Implementation Project (http://www.stir.ac.uk/crc-ip/experts/). She also serves on the Managing Committee of the Society Hugo De Groot.

Awards and bursaries

Boezaart was appointed as Exceptional Achiever by the University Council on three occasions.

Telephone:  +27 12 420 2354 

Fax: +27 12 420 3961 

Email: [email protected]

[August 2020]