The University of the Western Cape (UWC) is a dynamic and diverse institution rooted in the African continent, with an expanding global presence. It is committed to excellence in teaching, research, and community engagement, and is widely recognised for advancing critical and socially responsive scholarship within a rapidly evolving higher education environment.

The Faculty of Law is a leading centre of legal scholarship and professional training, distinguished by its commitment to constitutionalism, social justice, and transformative legal education. Its graduates and former staff have made significant contributions across academia, the judiciary, the legislature, the executive, the legal profession, and the broader public and private sectors.

The Department of Private Law plays an integral role in the delivery of the LLB programme through the teaching of core areas of private law, including the law of persons, family law, contract, delict, property, and succession. Its postgraduate offerings encompass specialised and advanced areas of private law, including customary law, legal pluralism, intellectual property, housing and land reform, and the intersection between private law and constitutional rights. The Department’s teaching, supervision, and research promote rigorous doctrinal scholarship and critical engagement with the development of private law in South Africa and its broader social, constitutional, and comparative contexts.

The Department invites applications for a permanent position at Senior Lecturer or Lecturer level. The successful candidate will contribute to undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, research, and academic leadership within the Department’s core areas, including Contract Law and the Law of Delict.

The successful candidate will be responsible for the following key performance areas:

• Facilitation of teaching and learning at undergraduate and postgraduate levels
• Development and delivery of core LLB modules, including contract law and the law of delict
• Curriculum development and assessment design
• Supervision of postgraduate students (at undergraduate, master’s, and where applicable, at doctoral level)
• Conducting research and publishing in accredited journals
• Participation in departmental, faculty, and university governance structures
• Engagement in community-based and socially responsive legal initiatives
• Contribution to academic leadership and programme development

For appointment at Senior Lecturer

• A doctorate in private law or a related field
• Accredited publications in the field of private law
• Teaching experience in the field of private law
• A record of successful supervision, at least at NQF level 8
• Evidence of community engagement

The following will strengthen the application at Senior Lecturer level:

• A record of successful supervision at master’s and/or doctoral level
• A professional qualification and/or practical experience in law

For appointment at Lecturer

• An LLM and active enrolment in a doctoral programme
• Demonstrated teaching or tutoring experience
• Evidence of an accredited publication
• Engagement in community engagement initiatives

The following will strengthen the application at Lecturer level:

• A doctorate in private law or a related field
• Publications in the field of private law
• Teaching experience in the field of private law
• A professional qualification and/or practical experience in law
• A record of successful supervision

Required Competencies at both levels:

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Strong teaching, facilitation, and assessment skills
• Ability to operate effectively in a diverse academic environment
• Student-centred teaching approach
• Research and scholarly writing competence
• Planning, organisational, and administrative skills 
• Ability to contribute to departmental and institutional leadership