Matric Results Case of Afriforum and Others: Leave to Appeal Granted

In the case concerning matric results, where a full bench of judges in the High Court in Pretoria ruled in favour of AfriForum and other parties that these results may continue being published, the Information Regulator (IR) is still relentlessly opposing publication.

The High Court denied the IR’s application for leave to appeal on 3 June 2026, after which it approached the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) directly for leave to appeal.

The application has been granted
According to Alana Bailey, AfriForum’s Head of Cultural Affairs, relief that the dispute over the publication of matric results had been resolved, turned out to be short-lived.

“Evidently the IR neither realises the futility of this case, nor the risks that a ruling in its favour would entail.

While the IR is playing power games, it is the future of information that must be disclosed in the public interest that is at stake,” she says.

AfriForum’s legal team is also concerned that the IR already stated in an article in the Sunday Times of 17 August 2026 that the case will be heard by the SCA, while leave has only been granted this week.

The IR will be asked for an explanation in this regard.

The case originated in 2022 when the Department of Basic Education (DBE) attempted to prohibit the publication of the matric results.

At the time the court ruled in favour of AfriForum and the other parties involved that public disclosure had to continue.

In late 2024, the IR attempted to prevent the DBE from publishing the 2024 matric results.

However, the IR’s application for an interdict against this failed, after which the case on the merits followed.

In December 2025, a full bench of judges ruled that matric results with candidates’ examination numbers instead of names could be published on public platforms, after which the IR’s applications for leave to appeal ensued.

In various fields, research depends on the use of information of individuals who can only be identified by numbers or codes.

This is specifically done to protect their anonymity and privacy, just as is the case with matric results.

This is therefore a case with wide implications, as it deals with the challenge to find a balance between the right to privacy and public interest.

AfriForum hopes that a final resolution will be found soon.