Prof Delano Cole van der Linde is an Associate Professor in the Department of Public Law at Stellenbosch University (SU), where he earned his LLB, LLM, and LLD degrees. 

Before joining the SU Faculty of Law, Prof van der Linde taught at North-West University, where he offered several modules—including criminal law (general principles and specific crimes) and legal interpretation—and served as Subject Chair for Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure.

His doctoral dissertation, “Criminal gang activities: A critical and comparative analysis of the statutory framework under South African criminal law”, advocates for legislative reform while detailing the textual, procedural, institutional, and constitutional issues surrounding Chapter 4 of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998.

He serves as a board member of the Pavocat Stellenbosch Academy, sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Contemporary Roman-Dutch Law (THRHR), and is a member of the Society Hugo de Groot. He is also a contributor to South African Criminal Law and Procedure Volume III: Statutory Offences.

Prof van der Linde received funding from the National Research Foundation (NRF) to conduct postdoctoral research expanding on his doctoral work. In 2023, he was awarded Stellenbosch University’s Vice-Chancellor’s Research Excellence Award in the Early Career Researcher category.