4 minute read
Global Witsies
Natalie Keetsi: A Year at Harvard Law School
My legal career started in 2010 as a first year LLB student at Wits. I graduated in 2014 with distinction and in the top 10 of my class. When featured in the 2013 edition of the legal publication "Without Prejudice", as one of the top law students in South Africa, I said that I hoped to read for the LLM degree at an Ivy League law school in the United States. On reflection, I am amazed that I am now doing so at Harvard and as a Fellow of the Harvard South Africa Fellowship Program.
I fondly recall my time at Wits and the law library lawns, where I often prepared for classes and connected with classmates. Pursuing my first law degree was the foundation and springboard to the opportunities I have had academically and professionally because of the quality of the education the institution offers.
After graduating, I joined ENSAfrica, headquartered in Sandton, Johannesburg, as a candidate attorney. I was assigned to a team that specialised in disputes in the construction and energy sectors. I spent two years doing my articles and then received an offer as a junior lawyer in that team.
In 2017 I joined Pinsent Masons LLP, a multi-national law firm headquartered in London, as one of its founding lawyers to open its first office in Africa. I was passionate about training the junior lawyers and candidate attorneys. I exceeded my hourly and financial targets by exceptional margins and became the first attorney in the South African office to climb the global ranks of the firm, most recently being promoted to senior associate.
At Pinsent Masons, I was in the legal team that led a high-profile corruption-related corporate criminal investigation. It secured the largest civil recovery in the history of the law enforcement authorities in South Africa. It was followed by a ground-breaking multi-billion rand global resolution involving the law enforcement authorities of the US, South Africa and other jurisdictions. Working on a case of this magnitude was career-defining, not only because of the outcome but also through working with and learning from the best legal minds in South Africa and the US.
Nearly 10 years after my last year as a Wits law student, I made the bold decision to pursue my dream of returning to the classroom to read for that master’s degree at Harvard Law School.
The application process was extensive and there was a long wait to hear the outcome. Receiving the positive news of my acceptance was an indescribable moment that I will always cherish.
When I arrived at Harvard, orientation kicked off with a busy yet enjoyable schedule followed by the start of the fall semester in mid-September 2022. The LLM class of 2022-2023 consists of 184 exceptional and dynamic candidates from 63 jurisdictions around the world. I am one of two South Africans in the class.
The academic experience is incredibly rigorous and intellectually stimulating, using a Socratic method of teaching. To learn from distinguished professors and leaders whose careers and work I have admired over the years has been enriching.
I spend a lot of my time at the Harvard Law Library. In my spare time, I enjoy immersing myself in the Bostonian culture, watching the Harvard football and ice hockey games against other schools as well as the Boston Celtics’ NBA basketball game with some class mates. I’ve enjoyed seeing how each holiday, such as Halloween and Christmas, is celebrated and the beauty in the transition of the seasons. I am thoroughly enjoying the winter and snow. I also have some favourite coffee and food spots close to campus: Bluestone Lane Café for coffee, breakfast and brunches and a vegan restaurant called Life Alive.
I’ve had the unwavering support of my mentors, close friends and most importantly my mother and sister. My mom instilled my faith and raised me to be driven, principled, hard-working and believing that, with God, all things are possible. My older sister, who lives in Manhattan and is a New York University graduate, inspired me to chase my dreams as she did hers.
I look forward to embracing every moment and opportunity. I hope that by sharing my professional and academic journey, it will inspire others. Dreams are attainable through exceptional and consistent hard work, even when it may seem impossible.
Natalie is "thorougly enjoying the winter and snow".
