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06 October 2020 | Story Nonsindiso Qwabe | Photo Supplied
Leah Molatseli is the founder of Lenoma Legal, a legal technology company which specialise in commercial and labour matters for small and medium businesses.
Legal technology and innovation specialist and member of the University of the Free State Council, Leah Molatseli, tackled the intersection of law and technology in her new book, titled #LegalTech Startups and Innovation. 

As technology continues to revolutionise how traditional industries function, legal tech is no longer a foreign concept in the country’s current legal market. The technological boom that has occurred over the past few decades has reshaped many industries. Molatseli said her book is a bridge in the knowledge gap; it is a comprehensive guide for using new technologies in order to provide legal services that are not restricted by physical barriers. 

Molatseli said in her career as a lawyer, she has witnessed first-hand the need for ordinary citizens to gain greater access to justice.  This has led her to adopt new technology that works for the client by cutting costs, improving efficiency, and reaching people more effectively. In 2017, she co-founded Lenoma Legal, a legal tech start-up that provides legal services virtually. 

“While a digital divide still exists, mobile penetration has increased drastically in the past few years, making it much easier to provide legal help from anywhere. My hope is that this book will open up different avenues for law firms, entrepreneurial people who want to innovate within the legal space, and Law students to start thinking differently about how they can shape their careers.”

Technology pivotal to legal industry

Molatseli said she decided at the beginning of 2020 to put the knowledge she gained into a book. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit South Africa, it quickly became apparent that the legal profession had to seek alternative ways to carry out its functions, and the pivotal role that technology has played made the book a timely release. 

“The pandemic has cemented the need for access from anywhere in the world. For me, it’s about access. I believe that access to legal services is a basic human right, and legal tech and innovation plays a huge role in making that happen,” she said. 

Molatseli said #Legaltech Startups and Innovation is a guide that will equip other forward-thinking practitioners to do exactly the same. She said as technology continued to advance, it is becoming easier for anyone within the legal world to create and build solutions.

Book shines light on new avenues in law

“For many years we’ve been made to think that legal careers are linear; get your degree and go work in a law firm, but it’s no longer like that. There are so many avenues open to people within the law industry, and the moment you become aware of this, you can take charge of your career. If we can integrate this type of thinking, the opportunities are endless. This book can drastically change how we do things and how we approach law.”

The book is available for ordering from: https://juta.co.za/catalogue/legaltech-startups-and-innovation_28319/. If you would like to get more information on the book, follow Leah Molatseli on Twitter at @leahmolatseli. 

News Archive

UFS to get transformation plan for African context
2005-02-04

The University of the Free State is to draft a comprehensive Transformation Plan to give impetus to the process of making the UFS an inclusive, non-racial, non-sexist, multi-cultural and multi-lingual university within the African context.

Delivering a keynote speech at the Official Opening of the UFS today, the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Frederick Fourie, said the Transformation Plan would include aspects such as employment equity, institutional culture, academic excellence, and other elements.

He added that another aspect to be considered in the academic element of the Transformation Plan was the issue of the African context, of a university for Africa, in Africa, of the African university.

According to Prof Fourie, the best way of understanding the role of the UFS in Africa and for Africa, is for the university to become a truly engaged university that bridges the gap between the institution and the community. He said the UFS had for more than 10 years been at the forefront of transformation in higher education, and had gone through several phases of transformation. However the UFS needed to embark on a new phase of transformation which would be guided by a comprehensive Transformation Plan.

The Transformation Plan would be the result of an inclusive consultation process involving staff, students, alumni and other stakeholders. It would also be based on a review of current policies and practices.
The process would be led by a Transformation Plan Team, co-ordinated by the Vice-Rector: Academic Operations, Prof Teuns Verschoor, and the Vice-Rector: Student Affairs, Dr Ezekiel Moraka.

“Obviously we should also not underestimate the complexities of transformation and of building a new society, given our complex history and the legacies of poverty, underdevelopment, colonialism and apartheid.

“We must consider support for staff involved in these transformation steps, including appropriate staff development, capacity to support transformation processes, as well as flexible and supportive administrative practices,” Prof Fourie said.

He said the UFS management understood the urgency of transformation in the current democratic South Africa and the changing global environment and appealed to staff and students to participate fully in drafting the Transformation Plan for the UFS.

“Transformation at the UFS has been and will continue to be a process with many facets that seek to enhance excellence in all spheres of university life, and is much more than merely ensuring employment equity,” he said.

Prof Fourie said: “We have reached a historic moment in the life of the UFS where innovative thinking and bold steps yet again are necessary because failure is not an option.”

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: (051) 401-2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
4 February 2005

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