South Africa, May 9 -- This official judgment follows the interim order handed down in December 2024, which afforded blind and visually impaired people legal protection to convert copyright protected works into accessible formats without having to obtain permission.

This long-awaited relief stems from a case brought before the Constitutional Court in 2022, in which Blind SA, represented by Section27, challenged certain provisions of the 1978 Copyright Act that criminalised anyone who converted reading materials into accessible formats without the consent of the copyright holder.

Following the ConCourt's ruling this week, Section27 said the judgment marks a turning point that will now allow greater access to reading materials for all per...