Legal activist Gareth Prince and fellow applicants seeking an urgent halt to cannabis arrests and a review of legislation, have stepped back from ‘Lawfare’ and a settlement appears to be under discussion. This follows discussions held in the Western Cape High Court last week.
2026/08/06 14:10
Brett Hilton-Barber
The Gareth Prince Western Cape High Court application calling for a halt to cannabis arrests and a review of legislation is heading towards a settlement.
Prince confirmed yesterday that some of the applicants in the bid were keen to negotiate rather than pursue the path of lawfare
The urgent application launched by Prince, Rastafarian leaders and small-scale farmers surfaced again the Cape Town High Court on Friday, 31 July 2026, nearly four months after it was lodged.
Prince told Cannabiz Africa on 4 August that he was preparing a statement on Friday’s legal outcomes and that a settlement may be in the air.
“Some of the respondents expressed a willingness to settle after I indicated that we are not interested in empty court victories” he Whatsapped me. “We would rather have the farmers ready for planting this season. They are open to discussions which is what we are putting in place now.
“I thought we owe it to the community to entertain one last opportunity to get government around a table before adversarial proceedings. If mediation fails, which is unlikey, we’ll be back in court on 15 September 2026”.
Cannabiz Africa will publish Prince’s report back once received.
