A couple of high-flying legal eagles who graduated from WSU’s law programme are primed to showcase their legal prowess and astuteness on the continental stage following their election into the Southern African Development Community Lawyers’ Association (SADC LA) executive council.
One half of this dynamic duo is Butterworth-born attorney Noxolo Maduba, a 21-year veteran of the legal profession who obtained her BProc Degree from WSU’s law department in 1998.
Maduba, who specializes in civil and commercial litigation, whilst also dabbling in family law, currently heads her own legal firm as director of aptly named ‘Maduba Attorneys Incorporated’ in Manguaung in the Free State.
“I was elected during the SADC Lawyers Association Annual Conference and General Meeting held on the 24-25 March earlier this year in Boksburg. It truly is an honour to be representing my country within the SADC Region and more specially to serve in the top five of the SADC LA Council,” she said.
Maduba’s election into the association is yet another feather in her cap which further solidifies her impact in the country’s law fraternity, after having served on numerous other bodies, including the Legal Practice Council as chairperson of risk and compliance committee (current), and being elected as the second president of the South African Women Lawyers Association during its infancy.
All those skills, experience, knowledge and insight will prove invaluable as an executive of the association as she’ll be at the forefront of and charged with strengthening, defending and advancing the rule of law in the SADC region and beyond.
An avid enthusiast for the arts, former WSU convocation president Zincedile Tiya, an attorney of the high court in Mthatha, said he fell in love with law after witnessing the high discipline and decorum in a court of law as depicted in one of the scenes of ‘Unyana Womntu’, a famous South African television drama.
“I liked how in that TV drama, during one of the court cases, everybody would stand up and rise when the magistrate would walk into the court. I mostly loved how the different lawyers from the two different sides would argue their cases in an attempt to outwit and outmanoeuvre the other. This is what makes law one of the greatest professions,” he said.
Tiya, who was born and bred in Mthatha, was especially proud of the role the university has played over the years in his and hundreds of others’ journey of fulfilling their dream of becoming attorneys, advocates and judges, due to the university’s willingness to open doors of learning to the poorest and most marginalized.
He said, quite proudly: “The WSU law degree is quite unique looking at the context of the university – its socioeconomic background and context, and yet its ability to produce products that are of highest quality. In South Africa, wherever you find lawyers you will find products of WSU in leadership positions. For instance, we have WSU products leading in key strategic positions, including the Black Lawyers Association president Bayethe Maswazi; the President of the National Association of Democratic Lawyers (NADEL) Mvuzo Notyesi, the President of Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) Justice Mandisa Maya, president of the Eastern Cape Division, Justice Selby Mbenenge, one of the country’s leading legal minds, Justice Mbuyiselo Madlanga of the constitutional court, as well current WSU convocation president and Senior Council Advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi”
Tiya obtained his LLB degree from the institution in 2011 and was later admitted as attorney of the high court in 2014.
By Thando Cezula
