North-West University (NWU) alumna Judge Yvonne Mokgoro received the Lifetime Achievement award during the 2020 Standard Bank Top Women Awards.

Judge Mokgoro was recognised as a woman whose career is an inspiration and demonstrates resilience and hard work.

Judge Yvonne Mokgoro obtained a B Juris degree in 1982 from the former University of Bophuthatswana (now North-West University), an LLB degree two years later, and an LLM) degree in 1987.

She also studied at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States of America, where she obtained a second LLM degree in 1990.

Judge Mokgoro was also received an honorary LLD degree from the former University of North-West in 1996. and an NWU Alumni award in 2013.

Judge Mokgoro was a judge of the Constitutional Court of South Africa from its inception in 1994 until the end of her 15-year term in 2009. She is also a former chairperson of the South African Law Review Commission.

She has written and presented papers, and participated in a myriad of national and international conferences, seminars, and workshops, focusing on the impact of the law on society in general and on women and children in particular.

Judge Mokgoro has had several awards bestowed on her including the Human Rights Award of the Black Lawyers Association and the Legal Profession’s Woman Achiever Award of the Centre for Human Rights at the University of Pretoria.

In 2015 she also received the Order of the Baobab in Bronze for "her excellent contribution in the field of law and administration of justice in a democratic South Africa".

The Standard Bank Top Women Awards

The Standard Bank Top Women Awards honour women whose consistent vision and pioneering leadership have completely impacted women in South Africa. Altogether the awards recognise women across a broad spectrum of industries including property, tourism and finance.

Adapted from: Standard Bank Top Women Leaders

NWU alumna Judge Yvonne Mokgoro.