We are indebted to this House and the National Assembly for their effort in accelerating the enactment of the Jurisdiction of Regional Courts Amendment Act of 2008, and making it possible for the President to promulgate this important Act on 9 August 2010. The Act brought closure to the racially conceived black divorce courts. Sixty-one regional courts across all provinces have been proclaimed courts to hear civil disputes, including divorce and family law disputes, and they have thereby brought the services closer to where litigants live. These proclaimed courts are predominately in former black areas and rural villages.