A Western Cape father took the mother of his two-year-old child to court, seeking an order to compel her to sign documents for the 2021 admission to Herschel Girls School in Claremont, Cape Town.
The parties are entangled in bitter disputes and have filed several applications against each other concerning their daughter, who is turning three sometime this year.
In this application, the father argued that the mother was unreasonable and refused to co-operate regarding the co-parenting of their daughter.
He said that despite holding several meetings with her to reach a compromise on a suitable school, he was unsuccessful and was forced to approach the Western Cape High Court on an urgent basis.
In a bid to strengthen his argument, he said applications for decent and reputable schools for the 2025 academic year have already closed and he was afforded a limited amount of time to convince the mother or lose the placement.
He submitted that it was too late to apply to another school of the same status and was afraid the delay will prejudice his child as she will be deprived of an opportunity to attend one of the best institutions in the country.
In her reply, the mother said the application was premature and that the urgency was self-created by the father, who chose to enroll the child at the school only at the last minute.
The mother further argued that their daughter was not yet three, and her entrance into a school was not an urgent matter. She contended that there were no indications that the delay would cause any emotional or developmental damage to the child.
The matter was heard by acting Judge Rehana Khan Parker who said the application was not ripe for hearing as there were no compelling reasons to have brought the matter on urgency.
The judge stated that a few more months without school would not prejudice their child, who is barely three years old and still in nappies. She added that their case needs mediation.
However, she said the application was an abuse of State resources.
“It is an abuse of the court processes to skip the queue to get this court to grant an order in circumstances where only genuinely urgent matters ought to be heard.”
Parker said due to the submissions made by both parties, the relevant case law relied upon, she concluded that the matter was not urgent.
The application was struck from the roll.
sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za
IOL News