In the male dominated law sector women are paving their own way.
Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court Regional Controlling Prosecutor Ninette Lambden and Regional Court Prosecutor Sibongile Nxumalo, spoke to the Kempton Express about their journey into law and hurdles they faced as women.
Lambden said she was in her first year of studying Biokinetics when she opted for a career change.
“I was told I was never going to make any money in Biokinetics and advised that I should reconsider.
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“I come from from a single parent household and was told I couldn’t work where I wouldn’t make money.
“That’s when I decided to switch to law,” she said.
Lambden said that while growing up, there were no women around her who were in the law sector.
It was only her uncle who was working as a state attorney.
She said she actually decided to become a prosecutor because of him.
“It was extremely challenging for me to get to this point in my career.
“The industry can be traumatising.
“We work under extreme pressure dealing with the ills of society.”
She beleives women in law are not taken seriously.
“I feel that there is a tendency of people just not taking women in law seriously and I do experience that especially with high ranking police officials.
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“It’s almost as though it’s difficult for some men to comprehend taking instructions from a woman.”
Lambden said a woman’s journey in law is more difficult than that of male counterparts and she deals with it by just doing her job and blocking all the negatives.
She also feels that a lot of effort has been placed on empowering and employing more women in the law sector.
She advised young girls looking to enter the law field to stay true to themselves.
“If you’ve got a strong moral upbringing and you’re an ethical person, stay true to that.
“Don’t be influenced by people.
“Be humble and have a passion for helping people because you’re not always going to get the gratification for that.”
During her free time she enjoys swimming, which she uses as a way to destress.
She also has two dogs that she loves taking for a walk.
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Nxumalo started her journey as a prosecutor in 2005.
She first joined Legal Aid as a candidate attorney while doing her articles.
She said that she didn’t like being defence attorney so she decided to go into prosecution.
“I fell in love with law at a very young age. I was in Grade Two when my dad told me about lawyers.
“In school, when we asked what profession are we going to pursue, I said I wanted to be lawyer even though I didn’t know much about the profession.
“Then I started being inquisitive about it and watching drama series about law,” she said.
She added that when she was in matric, she learned about prosecution.
“I was watching a drama series with my grandmother and there was a court scene.
“My grandmother pointed out the prosecutor to me and then I gained interest in what a prosecutor is.
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“I went to the library to find out and then started volunteering at the Brakpan Magistrate’s Court during school holidays.
“When I was in matric, I knew I wanted to be a prosecutor.”
When she volunteered at the Brakpan Margistrate’s Court, she met a black female controlling prosecutor who inspired her.
“In a time where English was barely used, I saw her speaking to her colleagues in Afrikaans and I was impressed and wished to do the same but in English.”
“After finishing my articles, as a student, I loved criminal litigation but then I also wanted explore corporate law.
“I then started applying for articles.
“I would apply at big law firms only to be told that I needed to have car.
“I didn’t even have learners licence at that time so that was a huge disadvantage for me.”
Nxumalo said that she would state that she uses public transport and they always told her no, based on that.
Also, law firms wanted someone who was fluent in Afrikaans, which was also another hurdle for her in getting into corporate law.
After graduating she joined Legal Aid.
Speaking about the disadvantages of being a woman in law, she said in interviews women are often asked if they are married or have children.
“We don’t think much of those questions but as we grow in the field, we realise that it’s a career limitation.
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“When you’re single and have no children, it’s not a problem being tossed to different departments and different locations.
“When you’re married and have children, you cannot just up and leave.
“It’s different for our male counterparts.
“It’s not a limitation for them.”
When she first joined the NPA in the West Rand, she was pregnant.
She said although she was not showing at the time, she hid her pregnancy.
“I was on contract and I wasn’t sure if they were going to renew it.
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“One of the senior public prosecutors saw me and she called me to the side and asked if I was pregnant.
“I confirmed I was pregnant and she told me my boss was going to be mad.
“I was worried that my contract wasn’t going to be renewed.”
Nxumalo said that as a woman, she can’t articulate herself with passion without being labelled feisty, aggressive and too emotional.
She said that she’s not any of that, she just believes in what she’s doing and she’s expressing that.
“When a male lawyer does the same thing, he’s considered good and doesn’t face the same criticism.
“There are more women on lower levels in the sector, but high ranking positions are male dominated.
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“Also, I think more should be done in encouraging young women to get into law.
“Especially young black women.”
When asked whether men or women make better magistrates, Nxumalo said for sexual offences, women are better because they are compassionate and not removed from the realities that women face.
In other cases, both genders are on the same level.
Nxumalo debunks the narrative that women in law are always serious.
During her free time, she likes reading novels and watching live music performances.
Additionally, she stated that she would like things to be easier for the next generation of women in law.
She said she would like things to be easier for them and for women to be exposed to other fields of the law.
