Equality Courts in South Africa are empowered to order an unconditional apology where hate speech, unfair discrimination, or harassment has been perpetrated. But is a court-ordered apology an effective remedy against hate speech? This chapter critically reflects on the role of court-ordered apologies as a remedy for hate speech. It does so through the lens of two South African Equality Court cases, each involving the publication of hate-filled bigotry against minority groups and each including a demand for an apology. These cases offer useful reflections on the effectiveness of apology as a legal remedy in relation to three ‘types’ of hate speech transgressors. The first is the recalcitrant hate speech transgressor who expressly refuses to apologise. The second concedes to an apology based on genuine and sincere remorse. And the third is the transgressor who – more cynically – may agree to apologise merely as a quick and cheap escape route from genuine reckoning. The chapter argues that in respect of each of these ‘types’ of transgressors, compelled apologies – when properly framed and crafted – can serve as a potent mechanism to restore and vindicate the dignity and equality rights of the target group.