In a bid to professionalize the paralegal sector and contribute to the transformation of the legal profession as well as higher education curricula, CPUT will from 2018 be offering the new Bachelor of Paralegal Studies degree.

The degree, being the first of its kind in the country, is designed to consolidate the fragmented approach to paralegal education in South Africa and bring comprehensive paralegal education firmly within the domain of higher education.

The Unit for Applied Law at CPUT obtained approval for the degree from the Department of Higher Education and Training as well as the Council on Higher Education.

Whilst preparing students for existing and future paralegal careers, aimed at meeting the primary legal needs of individuals and communities, the academic programme will also assist with the current challenges in the country’s legal education by providing a conduit to the LLB degree that serves as both a preparatory and screening mechanism for prospective candidates for the private legal profession, says the unit’s HoD, Adv Noleen Leach.

The programme rests on four core pillars of legal education, namely Private Law, Public Law, Mercantile Law and Formal Law.  Formal Law, for the most part, has been integrated into the other three pillars where appropriate, and the work-integrated components woven into the programme.

The programme takes three years to complete on a fulltime basis and five years part-time in the absence of any credit transfer or recognition of prior learning.

An APS score of 30 points is required to apply for the degree, but for more information about entry requirements contact Adv Leach on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 0219596418.

Written by Kwanele Butana
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The Department of Applied Legal Studies recently hosted a delegation from Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences (MUAS) for a three-day event, which included cultural exchange sessions, engagements during breakaway groups and plenary sessions at which the groups presented their work.

This emanates from last year, following discussions on collaboration between Prof Henrike Weiden from Department of Applied Legal Studies at MUAS and Prof Noleen Leach from the Department of Applied Legal Studies at CPUT. These discussions were on collaboration between the MUAS students on the Business Administration Masters and the exit level students on the Bachelor of Paralegal Studies programme at CPUT.

These initial discussions evolved into a collaborative project on the legal issues occurring in the context of data-driven businesses and to familiarise students with selected legal issues related to trans-border business activities with the focus on the protection of personal information.

The collaboration between MUAS and CPUT students occurred online and culminated into a three-day face-to-face interaction at Bellville campus. This occurred under the guidance of the subject lecturers and specialists, Nolan Martin, Raygaanah Barday, Michelle Mopp, Faizel Jacobs, Kay-Lynn Bailey, Servious Hungwe, Weiden and Leach.

The students had the opportunity to collaborate in person and compare notes in breakaway groups with their German counterparts on legal issues that occur in data-driven business models. Open coaching sessions were also conducted to prepare students for the joint presentations that were conducted in a plenary session on the last day. “At the end of the project, students were also acquainted with problem-oriented strategies in interdisciplinary and multinational teams,” said Hungwe.

He said the feedback received from both staff and students indicates that the visit was a success. “South African and German student teams gained experience in collaborating on the transfer of business activities from a European Union member state to South Africa. They researched the various legal questions related to data-driven business relevant to their individual team-projects and developed legally feasible solutions to the transfer of identified business models.”

Weiden echoed Hungwe’s words, saying she was “extraordinarily grateful” that Leach, Faculty and CPUT members involved showed such great effort not only to make the student project work, but also “to give us a very special time in Cape Town”.

“Students, staff members, faculty members, everyone had to walk the extra mile to make this happen. And everyone made us feel they believed in this cross-continental university project.”

However, she acknowledged that initially they had some challenges and doubts. “But in the end, we were rewarded in the most exciting and fruitful manner. And I personally, but also in the name of all participating students, traveling or non, would like to express my sincere gratitude. This was pioneering at its best. This project is also asking for an encore.”

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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The Bachelor of Paralegal Studies, which is the first degree of its kind on the continent, was launched to an audience of some of the countries brightest legal minds last week.
The three-year degree is part of the Unit of Applied Law in the Faculty of Business and Management Sciences and can accommodate only 100 registered students in its inaugural class of 2018. 

In his opening remarks, former Constitutional Court Judge Albie Sachs reflected on the importance of paralegals in the South African context and remarked that the degree was being launched at a pivotal point in South African history.
“These past few years we have seen the Constitutional Court working and we are at a point of renewal in the country. There couldn’t have been a more precipitous moment for this unit to be launched. What this degree does is dignify the paralegal professional which has always been part of the fabric of society,” he says.
Sachs concluded by predicting that degreed paralegals of the sort that CPUT is producing will one day infiltrate all levels of society like trade unions, big institutions, and universities where access to justice is sorely needed.

Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development John Jeffrey called the Paralegal Studies Degree a legal pioneer that follows in the footsteps of icons like Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo.
“Being a legal pioneer is important because the legal professional can be slow to change and adapt. You are here to take justice to the people,” he says.
“A recent survey by the Justice Department showed that 76% of respondents found it difficult to challenge a violation of their rights through a legal process. What this shows is that people feel that enforcing their rights is difficult. This unique degree will fill a significant gap.”

The Paralegal Studies Degree was curated over a number of years by Advocate Noleen Leach who benchmarked the course material in Canada and consulted stalwart community advice centres like Black Sash and members of paralegal organisations in the UK and US. The programme is designed to consolidate the fragmented approach to paralegal education in SA and bring comprehensive paralegal education. Students will work in a simulated environment with work-integrated components that will see them collaborate with community advice offices, justice centres, and government departments.

Applications for the 2019 intake of students will open in in May.
Visit for more course information.

Written by CPUT News
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The Department of Applied Legal Studies has welcomed the second intake of community-based paralegals to the block-release version of the pioneering Bachelor of Paralegal Studies programme.
The six students recently received a warm welcome at the Bellville campus, where they participated in a two-day orientation programme. 

Dr Noleen Leach, acting head of the department, said the first group of community-based paralegals (CBPs) were admitted last year.

She said preliminary indicators show a mutual knowledge exchange between the academy and the workplace, which is bound to enrich the programme and equip the CBPs with advanced knowledge, skills, and competencies. 

“Most CBPs on the programme have done well to date.”

The Community-Based Paralegal project was made possible with funding from the C.S. Mott Foundation and the South Africa Open Society Foundation. 

 “The department has committed itself to building capacity among the community-based paralegals who have rendered paralegal services in community advice offices for decades.  These students are the advanced guards and carry the hopes of a sector that has been left behind in the wake of the transformation of the administration of justice.  They know that an entire sector's hopes rest on their shoulders. Their success is the success of the CBP sector.”

Student Jannie Hendricks, who hails from Moorreesburg, said he joined the programme as “an activist at heart”.

“We run an advice office, and I felt that having a proper qualification would do so much for the office and me.”

Written by Ilse Fredericks
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