Matlala’s Advocate Loses Court Order Fight as Attempted Murder Trial Opens
Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala’s attempted murder trial opened at the Johannesburg High Court on 20 July 2026, but not before a scheduling dispute delayed the reading of charges. Advocate Annelene van den Heever, representing Matlala and his wife Tsakani, argued a co-accused’s postponement application would breach a binding court order, citing a Constitutional Court judgment from the Jacob Zuma contempt case. Judge Cassim Moosa ruled against her. It is the third forum this year in which the same argument from her has surfaced, and the only one where it has failed.
Before a single charge was read to Matlala and his 4 co-accused, the Johannesburg High Court spent close to an hour dealing with a fight over dates.
Advocate for accused number one, Musa Kekana, asked the court to pause the trial from 11 to 28 August 2026. He told the court he had another trial already booked at the Benoni High Court during that period, arranged before this trial’s dates were set down. The state did not object. Neither did the legal representatives for co-accused Tiego Mabusela or Nthabiseng Nzama.
One person objected. Advocate Annelene van den Heever, appearing for Matlala and his wife Tsakani, told the court that an earlier order made by Judge William Karam required the trial to proceed without interruption from 20 July 2026 until its conclusion. She argued that order was binding and could not simply be set aside without a substantive application.
“A court order is a court order, my Lord,” she told the court. “That court order will stand until such time as an application is brought, a substantive application, to set aside such court order.”
Van den Heever went further, citing a Constitutional Court judgment written by Justice Sisi Khampepe in the matter that found former president Jacob Zuma in contempt of court for defying an order to appear before the Zondo Commission.
“Court orders are effective only when their enforcement is assured,” she said, quoting the judgment. “Once court orders are disobeyed without consequence, an enforcement is compromised.”
She also told the court that neither she nor her instructing attorney had been informed the postponement application would be brought that morning.
Judge Moosa heard submissions from all parties and ruled against her. He found the court roll had set the matter down for 30 days in total, and that a 3-week pause would not prejudice any of the accused. The trial will now run from 20 July to 7 August 2026, pause until 28 August, and resume from 31 August through to 18 September 2026.
It is the third forum this year in which Van den Heever has raised a version of the same argument, that other proceedings involving her client should not be made to yield to this one. At the Madlanga Commission last week, the argument succeeded, and Matlala’s testimony there was postponed to 1 September 2026. In a separate Pretoria matter involving a collapsed plea deal tied to a SAPS health services tender, that case has also been postponed, to 11 September 2026. Monday’s ruling was the first time this year the argument has been tested and rejected.
Matlala faces 25 charges across 3 separate incidents dating back to 2022, including conspiracy to commit murder, multiple counts of attempted murder, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, money laundering and fraud. Under South African minimum sentencing law, a conviction on any of the attempted murder counts carries a starting point of life imprisonment unless the defence can show substantial and compelling circumstances to depart from it. All 5 accused pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.
The trial continues.
