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The Constitutional Court denied Steinhoff’s request for leave to appeal a lower court’s ruling that it has jurisdiction to hear a liquidation case against the retailer.
In late September, Steinhoff filed an urgent application with South Africa’s Supreme Court to prevent the Western Cape High Court from hearing an application to liquidate the company.
The former owners of shoe retailer Tekkie Town filed the winding-up petition, alleging that Steinhoff’s former CEO Markus Jooste “duped” them into selling their business.
After the Supreme Court ruled that it has jurisdiction to hear the winding-up case, Steinhoff filed an application with the Constitutional Court. It has also filed an appeal with the Supreme Court of Appeal.
The Constitutional Court stated in a brief statement that it had considered Steinhoff’s application for leave to appeal directly to it and concluded that it should be denied because it is “not in the interests of justice to grant leave to appeal at this stage.”
Steinhoff claimed that because it is a “external company” under the Companies Act, it cannot be wound up by a South African court. It has also claimed that the liquidation case involves new legal territory that has yet to be tested in court.
However, the group’s arguments did not persuade Western Cape High Court Judge Hayley Slingers, who ruled that the high court lacked the necessary jurisdiction to hear the case.
While the Supreme Court will not hear the appeal at this time, the application for leave to appeal is expected to be heard by the Western Cape High Court next week.
Meanwhile, as Fin24 reported on Thursday, the Western Cape High Court is only expected to hear Steinhoff’s separate application in January next year to approve its €1.4 billion (R25 billion) settlement plan.
The group’s share price fell from around R2.80 at lunchtime on Thursday to R2.34 at the same time on Friday due to the three-month delay.