Judicial immunity and judicial misconduct

Judges, from the lowest to the highest level, as well as any other person acting judicially including registrars, deputy registrars and senior assistant registrars, are accorded judicial immunity against any prosecution or civil suits arising from actions taken in the performance of their duties, provided these duties were carriedout in good faith. In other words, a judge cannot be sued in civil court for “any act done, sentence meted out, words spoken or orders made by him in the discharge of his or her judicial duty”. This doctrine of judicial immunity, derived from both common law and statutory law, ensures that judges and those acting judicially can hear and decide disputes without fear or favour.