Termination Of Parental Rights Attorneys In Sandton
Section 28 Children’s Act Applications in the High Court
Terminating a parent’s rights is the most drastic order a family court can make. The Children’s Act limits it to narrow grounds, reserves it to the High Court, and treats it as a last resort in the child’s best interests – any attorney who describes it as routine has not read section 28.
Our Sandton family practice advises on, brings and opposes section 28 termination applications and the less drastic alternatives under the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, for families across Sandton and the northern suburbs, from our Sandhurst offices.
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Rare, Serious, and Confined to Narrow Grounds
Section 28 of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005 permits a court to terminate parental responsibilities and rights – but only on enumerated grounds, and only as a last resort.
A termination matter runs through these components:
- abandonment of the child
- abuse or deliberate neglect
- chronic neglect without prospects of stabilising
- the best-interests inquiry
- High Court jurisdiction only
- alternatives short of termination
Section 28(1) allows termination where a parent has abandoned the child, or is guilty of abuse or deliberate neglect, or shows chronic neglect without reasonable prospects of stabilising care. Section 28(2) makes the child’s best interests paramount throughout. Only the High Court may grant the order, and it will examine every less drastic alternative – supervision, contact restrictions, temporary safe care, removal of specific rights – before ending them entirely.
Termination severs legal parentage, not the past: it affects guardianship, inheritance and consent rights permanently. Applications brought out of anger, or to clear the path for an adoption or a new partner, fail. Applications built on professional evidence of sustained abandonment or abuse succeed.
What a Termination Attorney Does
Assesses whether the facts meet a section 28 ground at all; where they might, assembles the professional evidence – social worker and psychological reports, Children’s Court records, protection order history – the High Court expects.
Where the facts fall short, advises the honest alternative: a section 24 suspension of specific parental responsibilities, a care and contact order, or supervised contact – remedies that fix the risk without ending parentage.
The question is not what the parent deserves. It is whether the child’s best interests permit anything less than termination.
Section 28 Termination vs Section 24 Removal
Section 28: Termination
The full, final ending of a parent’s parental responsibilities and rights.
Limited grounds – abandonment, abuse, deliberate neglect, chronic neglect. High Court only. Granted only where no lesser order will protect the child.
Section 24: Removal or Suspension
The court removes or suspends specific parental responsibilities and rights, or contacts, under section 24.
Available on best-interests grounds without the section 28 preconditions; it can be limited, conditional and – unlike termination – potentially revisited when circumstances change.
| Issue | Section 28 Termination | Section 24 Removal |
|---|---|---|
| Effect | Ends all parental rights permanently | Suspends or removes specific rights |
| Grounds | Abandonment, abuse, deliberate or chronic neglect | Child’s best interests, on application |
| Court | High Court only | High Court, with narrower reach |
| Finality | Final; parentage legally severed | Can be framed as temporary or conditional |
The Process, Step by Step
The pathway is deliberate because the order is final.
Grounds assessment
The attorney tests the facts against the section 28 grounds candidly – most enquiries end here, redirected to a lesser remedy.
Alternatives examined
The High Court will ask what was tried: supervision, contact restrictions, social worker intervention. The application must answer before it is asked.
Professional evidence assembled
Social worker and psychological reports, Children’s Court and protection order records, and where relevant the child’s own views.
Application and service
The application is launched in the High Court, Gauteng Division; the affected parent, and where applicable the other guardian and the child’s curator, are served.
Opposed hearing
The respondent parent may oppose; the court hears the evidence and applies the best-interests standard strictly.
Order and aftermath
If granted, the order records what remains – the duty of support questions, and any ongoing arrangements – and appeals run on High Court procedure.
Which Courts Serve Sandton Clients
Sandton matters run through the Johannesburg North machinery:
- Randburg Regional Court – the primary district seat for Sandton family matters.
- Children’s Courts (Randburg and Johannesburg) – abuse and neglect investigations and records that feed the High Court application.
- High Court, Gauteng Division – complex or high-value matters.
Otrebski Attorneys practises from 5th Street, Sandhurst – in the district it serves.
How to Choose a Termination Attorney in Sandton
This is surgical work. Choose on evidence.
- Candid grounds screening.The right attorney will talk you out of section 28 when the facts do not meet it. That honesty is the credential.
- High Court family practice.Termination lives in the Gauteng Division; ask about experience in that court specifically.
- Expert-network fluency.These applications stand or fall on social worker and psychological evidence; ask who instructs them and when.
- Command of the alternatives.Sections 24, 31 supervision, care orders and adoption-track options should be offered before termination is.
- No outcome promises.An attorney who guarantees a termination has never run one. Final orders are granted on evidence alone.
What Termination Work Costs
As a market guide, a grounds assessment and opinion commonly runs R7,500–R20,000; an opposed section 28 High Court application R80,000–R250,000 or more given the expert evidence required, on hourly rates of R1,500–R4,400. Excluded unless agreed: social worker and psychological experts, curator ad litem charges and counsel’s fees, quoted separately.
Otrebski Attorneys scopes each phase in writing before work begins. Clients come before billable hours. No hidden costs.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
The expensive mistakes are avoidable.
The Less Drastic Alternatives
Ending parentage is the last resort, not the first
Before the High Court ends a parent’s rights it will want to know what was tried: supervision, contact restrictions, temporary safe care, or the removal of specific responsibilities under section 24. An application that arrives at termination first reads as premature.
Where the facts fall short of the section 28 grounds, the honest route is a narrower remedy: a section 24 suspension, a care and contact order, or supervised contact, each answering the risk without severing parentage. Most enquiries end here, redirected rather than dismissed.
Frequently Asked Questions
On what grounds can a parent’s rights be terminated in South Africa?
Under section 28 of the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, only for abandonment of the child, abuse or deliberate neglect, or chronic neglect without reasonable prospects of stable care – and only if termination is in the child’s best interests.
Which court can terminate parental rights?
Only the High Court. For Sandton matters that is the Gauteng Division, Johannesburg. No magistrates’ or children’s court can make a section 28 termination order.
My child’s father has never seen her. Is that abandonment?
Not automatically. The court examines the circumstances – duration, attempts at contact, reasons, and support of the child. Long absence points toward abandonment but must still pass the best-interests test.
Can a mother’s rights be terminated too?
Yes. Section 28 applies to any holder of parental responsibilities and rights, regardless of gender, on the same grounds and in the child’s best interests.
Does termination end the duty to pay maintenance?
No. Termination ends rights and responsibilities towards the child’s care and decisions, but the child’s right to support is not signed away by the order; maintenance questions are determined separately.
Is there a less drastic option than termination?
Usually yes – suspension of specific responsibilities under section 24, supervised or denied contact, care orders, or Children’s Court intervention. The High Court will require these to have been considered first.
How long does a termination application take in the Sandton area?
An opposed application in the Gauteng Division, Johannesburg commonly runs a year or longer once expert reports are complete. The professional evidence phase – not the hearing – sets the timeline.
Speak to a specialist.
Otrebski Attorneys practises from Office 9th Floor, The Spaces, 5th Street, Sandhurst, Sandton – with transparent billing and no hidden costs.
Call 060 500 3098
Office hours: Monday to Friday, 08h00 – 17h00 · send a message
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