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Overview

The Faculty of Law at North-West University provides quality legal education, undertakes focused research and is involved in the community. The Faculty’s goal is to equip law students with the knowledge, ethics and skills that they will need in their professional lives, and also to expand the science of law through the research our staff and postgraduate students conduct in the service of justice and our constitutional democracy.

We offer quality legal education and focused research, and are involved in our community.

We offer law programmes across three campuses, including Law Clinics in Mahikeng and in Potchefstroom. We therefore have a presence in, and understanding of, urban and rural environments.

In our undergraduate studies we offer well-rounded curricula that incorporate public law, legal philosophy, private- and mercantile law as well as criminal and procedural law. The postgraduate offerings on master’s and doctoral levels encompass diverse fields, including environmental law and governance, estate law and trade law.

We strive to be the gathering place of choice for diverse, interesting and dynamic people with an interest in law and our constitutional democracy. We seek out partnerships with students and researchers who share our commitment to the service of justice.

We promise the sustained provision of inspired and ethical legal education, backed by relevant, forward-looking research and meaningful community engagement.

In Memory, Prof Johan van der Vyver

The Faculty of Law mourns the passing of Prof Johan van der Vyver, former dean of the Faculty of Law

Prof van der Vyver (1934-2023), former dean and professor of law at the Faculty of Law, was the first person to introduce a module in human rights at a South African university.

The module, human rights, has been taught since 1970 at the former Potchefstroom University for CHE, now the North-West University. His former students and colleagues will always remember him as an exceptional lecturer if not the best. His logical and thought-provoking lectures delivered critical academics and practitioners. He inspired future generations of human rights activists and lawyers at the NWU and other universities in South Africa. He was an active academic until his death at the age of 89. He will be sorely missed, but his legacy will continue. In 1999 the journal Koers dedicated an edition in honour of his 65^th birthday, that you can find here https://www.koersjournal.org.za/index.php/koers/issue/view/50.