Subjects that are needed to become a lawyer in South Africa include Foundations of South African law, South African private law, constitutional law, criminal law, intellectual property, evidence and African Customary Law. Some classes are mandatory during law school and others are elective classes that you can choose depending on your interest.
However, the first thing you need to know is that in South Africa lawyers are known as Attorneys and Advocates. It takes at least seven years to become an attorney and an additional year to become an advocate. As a law student, being prepared and knowing your career path are simple steps to landing your ideal legal job. In order to become a certified legal practitioner in South Africa, the following are processes to follow;
After successfully passing the LSAT, you will need to enrol and complete an LLB Law Degree which is a four-year degree, and this is the minimum requirement. You also have the option of completing the BCom Law Degree before the LLB Law Degree but this is not compulsory. However, should you attend the BCom Law Degree, in addition, it can take up to five years.
According to the Attorneys Act, a candidate attorney will successfully complete his Articles of Clerkship after a period of two years as well as attending part-time law school.
Lawyers need to be able to apply facts to the law. They need to use their logic skills in order to find fault in the opponent’s argument. There’s a reason that logic games make up a good portion of the Law School Admission Test. Attorneys have to be able to create logical arguments, reason and evaluate the arguments of others.
Lawyers need to know how to use technology. Whether a lawyer works in the private sector, for a government agency or even as a judge, they have to work with various software systems. Most law firms use a case management system to manage files and bill clients.
Lawyers have to understand and analyze large amounts of information. They must read quickly and figure out what’s important to their case. Then, they need to effectively communicate this information in writing. Some legal specialities lean primarily on speaking, while other careers focus entirely on writing. However, all lawyers need to be able to read, write, and speak effectively.
The LLB degree usually takes four years to complete and the BCom plus LLB degrees five years. If you obtain a law degree outside South Africa, you will have to contact the National Forum of Advocates (NFA) to verify whether your degree is recognised as equivalent to an LLB in South Africa.
If you are not registered as a candidate attorney, this time you have spent working will not be recognised by the court once you apply to be admitted as an attorney.
The Qualification of Legal Practitioners Amendment Act of 1997 stipulates that an LLB degree is required to practise law in South Africa. The degree must be obtained from an accredited South African law school at one of the various universities or colleges in South Africa.
After your PLT course, you will write your board examinations. These can be written every February and July/August. In total, you have to pass four board examinations, namely Estates, Bookkeeping, Attorneys’ Practice and Court Procedures. You can choose when you will write which examination as long as you pass all four.
Everyone who wishes to become an attorney in South Africa must begin by completing their LLB, which can be no less than four years in length. They must attend an institution in South Africa unless they have already completed an LLB from an institution from an approved country. The designated countries approved in South Africa currently are Swaziland, Namibia, Lesotho and the former Bophuthatswana, Venda, Transkei, and Ciskei states. If you have an LLB from any other country, then you need to approach a South African law school for assessment of your law degree as credit towards a South African one.
Well, the first thing you need to know is that in South Africa lawyers are known as attorneys and advocates. It takes at least seven years to become an attorney and an additional year to become an advocate. Only some foreign-trained lawyers are able to avoid repeating their LLBs at a South African law school – as usually a South African qualification is necessary.
The designated countries approved in South Africa currently are Swaziland, Namibia, Lesotho and the former Bophuthatswana, Venda, Transkei, and Ciskei states . If you have an LLB from any other country, then you need to approach a South African law school for assessment of your law degree as credit towards a South African one.
Once you have completed at least six months of your articles of clerkship, then you can take the Attorney's Admission Examination. This has four parts; Practice and Procedure, Wills and Estates, Attorneys’ Practice, Contracts and Rules of Conduct, and Legal Bookkeeping.
It can be shortened to one year if the student completes the full-time course at the School for Legal Practice for a period of approximately six months. Otherwise, this course is attended on a part-time basis for a shorter period of time of around five months.
This training period is conducted in a law firm and is generally two years in length.
There are unofficial lessons available from some law lecturers, and if you are recommended one and are feeling weak in an area of the exam, then taking the lessons from a reputable teacher is a great way to grow your confidence.
the practice, functions and duties of an attorney, including the ethical duties of an attorney; and. a knowledge of accounting necessary for the keeping of accounting records referred to in section 87 of the Act, and compliance with accounting rules published by the Council from time to time.
During the 24-month PVT contract, a candidate attorney must complete a programme of structured course work of not less than 150 notional hours, as prescribed in regulation 6 (10). That course is the equivalent of the 5 week course presented by LEAD. If the course has not been completed satisfactorily within 36 months from the date of registration of the PVT contract, the candidate attorney will be required to repeat the course work programme.
They are practice orientated and comprise of: the practice and procedure in the High Court and in courts established under the Magistrates’ Courts Act, 32 of 1944; the practice and procedure relating to the winding up and distribution of the estates of deceased persons;
Simply put, the LLB can be achieved in one of three ways: “A two-year LLB stream where students choose to first do a BA (Law) or a B Com (Law) which feeds into the LLB (5 years altogether); A three-year LLB stream (for students who decide, after completing a first degree, to study law); and.
The minimal requirement according to Section 26 (1) of the LPA is the completion of an LLB degree (from a university registered in South Africa) – specifically “ a course of study of not less than four years; or a course of study of not less than five years if the LLB degree is preceded by a bachelor’s degree other than the LLB degree ”.
Lawyers are called upon to make distinctions, to explain how and why cases or experiences are alike or different. Lawyers are expected to restore equilibrium, to be balancers. Every discipline, every profession, every job, and every calling has a cutting edge. At that cutting edge, lines are drawn.
To ease the stress of the situation, you can choose which ones you want to write and when. You do not have to write all four together (although many people do) and can instead write 2 exams in August of your first year of PVT and the next two in March of your second year of PVT.
You have to hit the books to become a lawyer in South Africa. As stipulated in the country’s Attorneys Act of 1979, you must complete a four-year bachelor's program to earn the required LLB degree. The degree must be earned at an accredited law school in South Africa.
Subjects required to study law in South Africa include those with general application and those that are more specific. Subjects that are needed to become a lawyer in South Africa include Foundations of South African law, South African private law, constitutional law, criminal law, intellectual property, evidence and African Customary Law.
The South African law requires that a lawyer obtain a law degree, work several years in a legal setting and pass an admissions exam. You must also be at least 21-years-old and a citizen or legal resident of South Africa.
The exam tests your knowledge of legal practice and procedure, wills and estates, legal bookkeeping, and attorneys’ practice, contracts and rules of conduct. The attorneys’ admission exam is taken once you’ve completed six months of either real-world experience or attendance at a practical legal training course.
You need to go to school, get a degree in law, sit for and pass an admissions examination and work for several years.
You must at least be 21 years of age before you get the green light to become a lawyer.
It takes one to five years but it all depends on the school attended and experience garnered so far. For those who already have at least five (5) years of relevant legal experience which include experience as a regional prosecutor or magistrate are exempted from the real world experience requirement.