Jody Kollapen | |
|---|---|
| Justice of the Constitutional Court | |
| Assumed office 1 January 2022 | |
| Appointed by | Cyril Ramaphosa |
| Judge of the High Court | |
| In office 11 May 2011 – 31 December 2021 | |
| Appointed by | Jacob Zuma |
| Division | Gauteng |
| Chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission | |
| In office October 2002 – October 2009 | |
| Appointed by | Thabo Mbeki |
| Preceded by | Barney Pityana |
| Succeeded by | Lawrence Mushwana |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Narandran Kollapen 19 May 1957 Lady Selborne, Pretoria Union of South Africa |
| Spouse | Rani Kollapen |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | University of the Witwatersrand |
Narandran "Jody" Kollapen (born 19 May 1957) is a South African judge who joined the Constitutional Court of South Africa on 1 January 2022. He was appointed to the apex court by President Cyril Ramaphosa after a decade of service in the High Court of South Africa. He is also a former chairperson of the South African Human Rights Commission.
Kollapen rose to prominence in the 1980s as a human rights lawyer in his hometown of Pretoria, especially as instructing attorney in several high-profile apartheid-era political trials. He served as the national director of Lawyers for Human Rights in 1995 and 1996, and thereafter he joined the Human Rights Commission as an ordinary member. On the appointment of President Thabo Mbeki, he went on to serve as the commission's second chairperson from October 2002 to October 2009. He was an acting High Court judge in 2010 and joined the bench in the Gauteng Division permanently in May 2011. Following two unsuccessful nominations to the Constitutional Court in 2017 and 2019, Ramaphosa announced his elevation on 24 December 2021.