Meet the Host, MC and the speakers who will be joining us at our FWIL Legal Careers Workshop – Exploring the diverse career paths that a law degree can unlock.
Noemi Muya is the founder and director of FWIL, which she founded in 2018. Her desire to start and to grow FWIL is based on her passion for women and Africa. She is committed to showcasing woman power in all of its glory and to lead the way by passing the baton and sharing the wisdom.
Noemi is an attorney with a demonstrated history and experience in property law, commercial law and corporate law, as well as providing comprehensive, multi-jurisdictional external legal, governance, compliance and corporate expertise and support to various business development Investors in and across Anglophone and Francophone Africa.
Noemi has presented at a variety of conferences, workshops and webinars where she actively engages in discussions and panels on legal matters, career guidance, mentorship and various other topics.
She is currently an associate attorney at STBB Attorneys. She holds a BA Law degree, an LLB degree and she is currently an LLM candidate at the university of Pretoria.
Excited to have Rebecca Kanoerera as our moderator for the day đ I have been wanting to work with her for sometime time now and Iâm happy we are finally getting this chance.
Rebecca Kanoerera is a learning and development consultant, coach and author. She works in association with various leading training and consulting companies on multiple projects.
Rebecca is an experienced leader bringing over 20 years of working for multifaceted organisations from start-ups to global corporations including IBM. Prior to becoming an independent consultant Rebecca worked in the IT industry as a senior leader supporting multifunctional business units.
Her back ground includes people management, service delivery, business process outsourcing, project management, sale transaction support, marketing and strategy, working with teams in USA, Europe, Middle East, Asia, Africa & Turkey.
Rebecca studied Information Technology Systems, Project management and Service Management and Coaching. She serves on various boards she has also co-led planning strategy and execution for high-potential female and leadership development programs.
Forming part of our panel of speakers is Naledi Xaba.
Naledi is a Senior Company Secretary at Absa Group Limited, with background in secretarial services, corporate law & governance and experience in the financial industry, particularly within insurance companies. She holds a BCom Law and LLB degree (with distinction) and has established herself as a proficient Company Secretary with a keen understanding of legal intricacies and business operations.
Her career is marked by her rapid ascent into a senior role and notable achievements which highlight her dedication, exceptional leadership abilities and commitment to excellence.
Currently, Naledi is busy completing her Practical Legal Training, further solidifying her expertise and commitment to professional growth. She is passionate about contributing her knowledge and skills to drive organisational success, and with her strong work ethic, she continues to make impactful contributions in her role.
Naledi is also a former FWIL mentee
Leah Molatseli is a lawyer, published author, and engaging speaker, renowned for her innovative contributions to Legal Tech. As the founder, Business Owner of Contract Alchemists, she focuses on modernizing legal teams through legal operations, agile methodologies, and technology, propelling the legal sector into a new era of efficiency and effectiveness.
Leahâs academic endeavors include guest lecturing at the University of Cape Town, where she enlightens legal professionals on the transformative power of legal tech.
A Mandela Washington Fellow and University of Notre Dame alum, Leahâs dedication to advancing legal tech is further evidenced by her ISF Africa fellowship in 2023 and her recent shortlisting for the Women in Law Awards Justitia 2023.
Her leadership roles extend to the Advisory Board for the Global Legal Tech Hub and national representation for the Global Legal Tech Consortium.
Leahâs significant contributions to legal tech innovation have earned her accolades such as being named one of the International Legal Technology Associationâs Most Influential Women in Legal Tech for 2022, an American Bar Association 2022 Women of Legal Tech Honouree and Voice and Brand Council Member of CLOC (Corporate Legal Operations Consortium).
Ntsako Sue Hlabangwane is a Bcom law graduate with a passion for commercial property. She is currently a property manager and experienced in Sales and Office Administration with a demonstrated history of working in the food & beverages industry.
She currently runs her own short term rental apartment in Cape Town which she established in 2019 whilst furthering her studies.
She has also acquired her qualification in Business Principles & Practice, and with her business having grown and improved, she is currently branching into the property development space.
Mapule Setlaleleng is a Non-financial risk manager at Standard Bank. Prior to this position, she was an Associate Policy Analyst within the Prudential Authority (PA) at the South African Reserve Bank.
She is the co-lead of Women@PA which is an initiative of the PA geared towards promoting diversity, inclusion and equality.
Mapule specialises in insurance, climate-related risks and financial inclusion (specifically in relation to inclusive sustainable finance/green finance).
In addition, Mapule is alsoexperienced in financial crime, collective investments schemes, privacy and FAIS and market conduct compliance.
Her experience includes being involved in the drafting of the Guidance Notices on climate-related governance and risk practices for Insurers and Banks. She is also the PA representative for various climate related international initiatives.
Prior to joining the PA, Mapule was a Compliance Manager at Alexander Forbes Investments (2019 -2021) and started her career at Deloitte as a Forensic Analyst (2017 – 2019).
Her qualifications included:
- LLM in Insurance Law and Governance (University of Pretoria)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Planning (University of the Free State)
- Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial and Business Law (University of the Witwatersrand)
- LLB (University of the Witwatersrand)
- Certificate in ESG Investing (CFA Institute)
Mapule is also a former FWIL mentor đ
Cathy Machingaidze has over 25 yearsâ experience working within varying industries, covering hospitality, airlines, FMCG, banking and human resources consultancy. Her career has exposed her to working for leading multinationals in varying industries, gaining first hand experience working with businesses in Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, South Africa, Angola and the United Kingdom.
She has over 16 yearsâ experience in Talent Acquisition across subSaharan Africa, in both Executive Search and Contingency Recruitment. She began her recruitment career with Lorimak, a Human Resources Consulting firm, in Harare, where she headed the recruitment business.
Cathy went on to develop her expertise in Legal, Governance and Company Secretarial recruitment before taking up an in-house role with the Standard Bank Group. In this role she was responsible for recruitment for Legal and Internal Audit, across the group, both within South Africa and assisting with in-country hires for Cote dâIvoire, Lesotho, Mozambique and Angola.
Having made the decision to return to the recruitment agency environment, Cathy subsequently set up her own specialist agency, in partnership with the Redi Holbourne Group. She values partnering with business stakeholders and has worked as a specialist in very niche areas, growing her span of influence tremendously, through her ability to partner with clients and cement long term relationships with both clients and candidates.
She has played a key role in enabling clients to secure long term solutions for their talent acquisition needs, as well as enabling candidates to progress successfully throughout their careers.
One of Cathyâs passions is mentoring young and upcoming professionals. She lends her time to organisations in assisting candidates with their career preparation and navigating the corporate landscape.
Khensani Godi is an admitted attorney of the High Court of South Africa.
She is a Legal Specialist in Mineral, Property Rights and Permitting.
Khensani is a young, dynamic and determined professional with a passion for the law, education and sustainable development. She holds a Bcom Law majoring in Insurance & Risk Management and LLB degree.
She is also the founder of Re_Envisionwholeness.
When she is not practicing law (planning law, development law & environmental law), she spends her time discussing social issues, creating educational content for Youtube, reading or enjoying good music.
Thabang Lesita is a Legal Advisor at the South African Local Government Association.
He holds a BA Law degree, an Honours degree in Political Sciences and an LLB degree. In addition, he has completed a short course in Legislative Drafting at the University of Pretoria and he recently completed the Practical Legal Training at LEADS in advancement of his legal career.
Thabang started his journey at the Department of Cooperative Governance as an intern in the Legal Chief Directorate. Upon completion of the internship program he was promoted to Legal Administration Officer: Litigation Services.
In his current role as a Legal Advisor, Thabang is responsible for External Legal Advisory Services
Shela Teffo graduated with an LLB from the University of Johannesburg and she is an admitted Attorney of the High Court, now enjoying life as a non-practicing attorney. After leaving traditional practice – a decision she initially regretted when she found herself jobless – She dove into online legal jobs and hasnât looked back since.
Her journey started in South Africa with LegalWise and has now taken her across the globe (virtually) to work as a legal assistant for a US-based law firm.
In addition to her legal work, she moonlights as a freelance writer, having done the same for international corporations, and she is currently penning her soon-to-be bestseller (which she will be giving away for free, so maybe not a bestseller, but you get the idea!). đ
Shelaâs true passion is content creation, where she dedicates her time to helping âbaby lawyersâ find their footing in the legal profession.
She is the legal fairy godmother she wishes she had when she started her career. I can definitely relate to this!
âItâs incredibly rewarding, especially when people reach out to say my advice has made a positive impact on their careers.
Essentially, Iâm the girl who turned a career hiccup into an opportunity to mentor and inspire others. Plus, who knew unemployment could lead to discovering a passion for being in front of the camera and shaping future legal minds? Not me!â –
The purpose of this workshop is to explore the diverse career paths that a law degree can unlock, provide attendees with practical advice, industry insights, and networking opportunities to help you navigate your career path successfully.
The panel discussion will cover various topics, including career opportunities that a BA Law, BCOM Law or LLB degree can unlock, transitioning from a practicing attorney to non-practicing attorney, traditional legal career vs non-traditionallegal career and more! We have carefully selected professionals who are well versed on the topics mentioned.
See you on 10 August 2024!