University of Fort Hare LLB graduate Siphenkosi Nqoro’s dream of being an admitted attorney has moved a step closer to reality, after he began his articles of clerkship with an East London law firm, Gondongwana Ngonyama Pakade Attorneys.
Nqoro overcame the odds to graduate with an LLB degree from the University of Fort Hare’s East London campus as he had to juggle his full-time employment as a petrol attendant at a filling station in Mdantsane, while also studying towards his law degree.
This meant that he had to work as a petrol attendant at night and focus on his studies during the day.
His last day as a petrol attendant, a job he had since 2015, was April 8, before starting his law practical, otherwise known as articles of clerkship, on April 11.
“We had a WhatsApp group for law graduates where we shared opportunities in the law profession and that is when I got to hear about this opportunity, which I applied for and was successful,” Nqoro said, when asked how he landed the opportunity for the articles of clerkship.
He has described the start of his journey towards the realisation of his dream of being an admitted attorney as “pleasant and exciting”.
“At university we only dealt with the theoretical aspects of the law profession, and one never got to handle an actual case or even see an actual docket, let alone actually representing a client in a court of law, so the experience so far has been pleasantly surprising and exciting at the same time,” said the Qonce-born Nqoro.
Nqoro’s articles of clerkship will run for a period of two years, after which he will be eligible to apply for admission as an attorney.
He says his dream is to one day establish his own law firm with labour, civil and criminal law being his areas of interests in the legal fraternity.
