Judge Soma Naidoo from the Free State Division of the High Court

This week on Womanity-Women in Unity, Dr. Amaleya Goneos-Malka talks to Judge Soma Naidoo from the Free State Division of the High Court, who shares part of her journey to the bench. In early childhood Judge Naidoo came face-to-face with injustices of apartheid and was aware that the “law” was the instrument of discrimination, these experiences motivated her to change the “law”. Her path was not easy, but she stayed the course pursuing excellence in all her endeavours and proving her worth. Judge Naidoo shares some of the impactful cases she has worked on from criminal, to political, to industrial and domestic matters. Arriving at a judgement and suitable sentence is no easy task, and sometimes judges are faced with the worst aspects of humanity, but justice must still be metered out impartially. She mentions some of the strategies she uses to debrief and look out for her well-being as well as colleagues. Judge Naidoo offers several pieces of advice to aspirant lawyers and judges, which include networking, pursuing their academic studies and seeking mentorship to guide and support them throughout their careers. She also mentions a poem, called the “Desiderata” by Max Ehrmann, which is an inspirational prose that offers sound philosophies for living a good life, regardless of age. Tune in for more…