Editorial

Abstract

When PER (acronym for the Afrikaans journal title Potchefstroomse Elektroniese Regstydskrif, but also suggesting the Latin connotations of causation, durability and facilitation) first appeared in November 1998, there was an awareness of the incongruity of the notion of a law journal not being published in tangible form by an established law publisher on the one hand, and on the other of the inevitability of things to come. The editorial stated:

"In this era of an unstoppable increase in information on offer and improved means of communication, it is inevitable that the exchange of juristic ideas should develop and escalate electronically, by internet. A problem already challenging the time starved legal user of the electronic medium, is to separate the wheat from the chaff. For many people it is relatively easy to publish something on the Web. It is, however, just as demanding to produce quality in this manner as through any other medium, be it primitive or avant garde."

From the outset the Potchefstroomse Elektroniese Regstydskrif (PER) / Potchefstroom Electronic Law Journal (PELJ) was focused on maintaining high editorial standards, producing material for legal scholars worth reading. Probably still the most widely cited contribution to PER/PELJ (on Ubuntu by Justice Yvonne Mokgoro) appeared in the first volume. Papers delivered (referred to as orationes) by prominent scholars and judges are often published in PER/PELJ, and double-blind peer review practices are maintained throughout, except for the orationes.

From time to time guest editors are invited to produce single or special editions. Renowned South African and foreign scholars are regularly approached to review submissions to PER/PELJ, and the editorial board is composed of prominent internationally recognised academics and judges.

Since 2003, PER/PELJ has taken its place among a range of renowned internationally accredited journals, currently listed and indexed inter alia by IBSS, DOAJ, SSRN, AJOL, Boloka, SciELO, HeinOnline, and Web of Knowledge.

In 2016, PER/PELJ migrated to this online journal system, and contributions accepted for publication are now published continuously as soon as the finally edited version becomes available.

We are entirely grateful to our authors, reviewers and readers who have always believed in the scholarly quality of the contributions. You have been instrumental in the phenomenal growth of the journal over the last 18 years.

We are proud to announce the first contribution of 2016 entitled “Remedial Principles and Meaningful Engagement in Education Rights Disputes” by the renowned author, Sandy Liebenberg, who is a distinguished professor and HF Oppenheimer Chair in Human Rights Law, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.

Editor-in-Chief: Christa Rautenbach
and
Founding Editor: Francois Venter