Also known as: deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb · judge president Petrus Damaseb · High Court Judge-President Petrus Damaseb · Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb
Petrus Damaseb — Judge President and Deputy Chief Justice, nominated to Tanzania's post-election violence inquiry commission.
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The Namibian
Deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb refused a petition to appeal against convictions and sentence
“In an order issued by the Supreme Court last week, deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb and acting judges of appeal Dave Smuts and Theo Frank refused a petition in which the driver Jandré Dippenaar asked the court to allow him to appeal against his convictions and sentence.”
Murder convictions of crash driver to remain standingThe Namibian
Deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb found CPBN lacked legal authority to proceed after bid validity expired
“In the Supreme Court's judgment, deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb, with chief justice Peter Shivute and acting judge of appeal Theo Frank concurring, found that the procurement process had continued after the validity period of the bids had expired and that the CPBN no longer had the legal authority to proceed.”
Top court dismisses hostel food tender appealInformanté
Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb upheld High Court reasoning and dismissed appeal
“Supreme Court judges Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb, Peter Shivute and an acting judge of appeal upheld this reasoning and dismissed the appeal by the Procurement Board and the Education Ministry, finding that the time had indeed lapsed.”
Supreme Court upholds decision to cancel school hostel tenderThe Namibian
Deputy chief justice and judge president Petrus Damaseb was nominated to serve on Tanzania's post-election violence commission of inquiry
“Office of the Judiciary chief justice Peter Shivute nominated Damaseb to serve on the Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry to investigate the root causes of violence that followed the general elections held in October 2025.”
Damaseb urged to reject Tanzania inquiry roleInformanté
Judge President and Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb was nominated to serve on Tanzanian Presidential Commission of Inquiry
“The criticism follows the nomination of Judge President and Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb to serve on the commission after a request from Tanzanian authorities for a serving or retired Namibian High Court judge.”
AR accuses Namibia of compromising judiciary over Tanzania inquiry nominationWindhoek Observer
Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb was nominated to serve on a Tanzanian Presidential Commission of Inquiry
“The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) announced on Wednesday that chief justice Peter Shivute had nominated Damaseb following a request from the Tanzanian government for a serving or retired Namibian judge to serve on the commission investigating the root causes of the post-election violence.”
Opposition slam Damaseb’s Tanzania inquiry nominationThe Namibian
Deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb has been nominated to serve on a Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry investigating election violence
“Deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb has been nominated to serve on a Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry investigating violence that erupted after the country's 2025 general elections.”
Damaseb joins Tanzania election violence inquiryWindhoek Observer
Petrus Damaseb has been nominated to serve on a presidential commission of inquiry in Tanzania investigating post-election violence
“Sostenus Wilherm Namibia's deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb has been nominated to serve on a presidential commission of inquiry in Tanzania tasked with investigating the violence that occurred after the country's 2025 general elections.”
Damaseb appointed to investigate Tanzania’s post-election violenceThe Namibian
Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb wrote appeal judgement
“The appeal judgement was written by deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb, with whose decision acting judges of appeal Theo Frank and Dave Smuts agreed.”
Central bank wins N$40m appeal against DRC generalThe Namibian
Judge President Petrus Damaseb explained in his guidance notes the focus has shifted from determining blame to determining whether marriage has disintegrated beyond repair
“As judge president Petrus Damaseb explained in his guidance notes, the focus has shifted from determining who is to blame to determining whether the marriage has disintegrated beyond realistic repair.”
Divorce Reform: Balancing Legal Dignity, Family Value and the Sanctity of MarriageThe Supreme Court refused a petition to hear an appeal by driver Jandré Dippenaar against his murder convictions and 15-year prison sentence for a fatal collision near Henties Bay in December 2014 that killed six people. The conviction was Namibia's first murder prosecution for a road accident rather than culpable homicide.
28 September 2026 · The Namibian →
The Supreme Court refused a petition to hear an appeal by driver Jandré Dippenaar against his murder convictions and 15-year prison sentence for a fatal collision near Henties Bay in December 2014 that killed six people. The conviction was Namibia's first murder prosecution for a road accident rather than culpable homicide.
28 September 2026 · The Namibian →
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal by the Central Procurement Board and Ministry of Education, upholding a High Court decision that set aside a multimillion-dollar tender for supplying food to government school hostels. The court found the procurement process unlawful because the board continued proceedings after the 180-day bid validity period had expired.
6 September 2026 · The Namibian →
The Supreme Court upheld a High Court judgment canceling a multimillion-dollar school hostel food supply tender for government schools across Namibia's 14 regions after the Central Procurement Board and Ministry of Education appealed the decision. The tender was found to have irregularities, including the exclusion of a bidder for failing to provide an English translation of an Afrikaans-language supporting document.
4 September 2026 · Informanté →
Political parties have called on deputy chief justice and judge president Petrus Damaseb to reject his nomination to serve on Tanzania's post-election violence commission of inquiry. Job Amupanda and the Independent Patriots for Change cite concerns over the process, Namibia's silence on alleged human rights abuses, and international criticism of previous Tanzanian inquiries, arguing that Damaseb's participation could lend credibility to a commission of uncertain independence.
8 August 2026 · The Namibian →
The Affirmative Repositioning movement has criticised the Namibian government's decision to nominate Judge President and Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb to serve on a Tanzanian Presidential Commission of Inquiry into violence following Tanzania's October 2025 general election. AR accuses the authorities of compromising judicial independence and enabling a political whitewash of alleged human rights abuses.
6 August 2026 · Informanté →
Opposition parties AR and IPC have accused the Namibian government of compromising judicial independence by nominating deputy chief justice Petrus Damaseb to serve on a Tanzanian Presidential Commission of Inquiry investigating post-election violence. AR contends the nomination was a political act facilitated through government channels rather than proper judicial cooperation.
6 August 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
Namibia's Deputy Chief Justice Petrus Damaseb has been nominated to serve on a Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry investigating violence that followed Tanzania's October 2025 general elections, following a request from Tanzanian authorities for a Namibian High Court judge to join the commission.
5 August 2026 · The Namibian →
Petrus Damaseb, Namibia's deputy chief justice, has been nominated to serve on a Tanzanian presidential commission of inquiry investigating post-election violence following Tanzania's 2025 general elections. The Judicial Service Commission said Damaseb's judicial and administrative experience made him suitable for the sensitive role, and arrangements will be made to ensure his Namibian judicial duties continue without disruption.
5 August 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
The Bank of Namibia won a Supreme Court appeal upholding its decision to forfeit more than N$40 million in a Nedbank Namibia account belonging to retired Democratic Republic of Congo general François Olenga to the state, reversing a High Court decision from June last year that had set aside the forfeiture.
9 July 2026 · The Namibian →
The Dissolution of Marriages Act of 2024, which came into effect on 3 June, abolished the old fault-based system and now allows divorce on a single ground: irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. Spouses no longer need to prove adultery, cruelty, malicious desertion, mental illness or habitual criminality.
14 June 2026 · The Namibian →
Traditional leaders have responded to Namibia's new Dissolution of Marriages Act 2024, which replaced the fault-based divorce system with a no-fault regime based on irretrievable breakdown and came into operation on 3 June. Ondonga Traditional Authority spokesperson Frans Enkali says customary authorities traditionally did not focus on blame in marriage endings and already distinguished between jointly acquired assets and inherited property, practices that align with the law's aims to move away from adversarial proceedings.
10 June 2026 · The Namibian →
Namibia's new Dissolution of Marriages Act, 2024, which came into effect on 3 June 2026, replaces fault-based divorce with a single ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage. Courts may now consider factors including lack of companionship, emotional estrangement, and communication breakdown, rather than infidelity alone, though a divorce will not be granted automatically.
4 June 2026 · Informanté →
The Dissolution of Marriages Act of 2024, in effect today, replaces Namibia's fault-based divorce system with a no-fault framework based on the irretrievable breakdown of marriage, eliminating adultery and other matrimonial offences as grounds for divorce. Judge President Petrus Damaseb described the reform as "one of the most significant reforms in the history of Namibia's family law system," noting that the new emphasis is on whether the marriage has disintegrated beyond realistic restoration rather than identifying moral blame.
3 June 2026 · The Namibian →
Namibia's Dissolution of Marriages Act 2024 took effect on 3 June 2026, replacing fault-based divorce grounds (adultery, cruelty, desertion) with a single ground of "irretrievable breakdown of the marriage." The reform also empowers Magistrate Courts to grant divorces for the first time, and seeks to reduce hostility and simplify procedures.
3 June 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
The Supreme Court of Namibia ruled that the Livestock and Livestock Products Board of Namibia did not meet the legal standard to claim "wasted costs" in a dispute linked to the veterinary cordon fence. The court found that the Board's claim that changes to court papers caused it to incur unnecessary legal costs did not meet the threshold for wasted costs.
5 May 2026 · Windhoek Observer →
Judge president Petrus Damaseb praised retiring High Court and Supreme Court registrar Elsie Schickerling, who has served in the role for 17 years, for introducing judicial case management, court-connected mediation, electronic case filing, and overseeing the establishment of the High Court's northern division and building renovations. Schickerling is retiring from public service at the end of April.
28 April 2026 · The Namibian →
Former information and communication technology minister Peya Mushelenga will be sworn into the National Assembly on Friday to fill the parliamentary vacancy left by James Uerikua's death, according to NA spokesperson Sakeus Kadhikwa.
23 April 2026 · The Namibian →
Former NFA administrator Barry Rukoro credits the Nedbank Namibian Newspaper Cup, launched in 2001, with identifying and nurturing talent that led to Namibia's 2015 Cosafa Cup win and subsequent international tournament qualifications. The partnership also transformed the NFA's commercial fortunes and spurred national football infrastructure development.
2 April 2026 · The Namibian →
Gladice Pickering was sworn in as an Acting Judge of the High Court on Monday, serving from 16 March to 30 June 2026. Her appointment requires temporary replacement in her role as executive director at the Office of the Prime Minister, with Shivute Indongo taking over the position.
18 March 2026 · New Era →
President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah addressed the Supreme Court on the opening of the 2026 legal year, emphasising the constitutional independence of the judiciary, its role in democratic governance, and the need to address challenges including case backlogs, judicial security concerns, and rising crime affecting the tourism sector.
11 February 2026 · The Namibian →
The Supreme Court has found that the Namibian Competition Commission acted unlawfully by delegating its authority to investigate alleged price-fixing in the pharmaceutical sector to its secretary rather than exercising that power itself. The court has referred the matter back to the commission to determine whether to continue the investigation against the Pharmaceutical Society of Namibia and pharmacies accused of imposing a uniform 50% mark-up on prescription medicines.
23 January 2026 · The Namibian →