Honouring a bold, progressive legal educator

Associate Professor Jameelah Omar has been recognised with a Distinguished Teacher Award (DTA) for her transformative contribution to legal education at the University of Cape Town (UCT), where her teaching blends intellectual rigour, social justice and deep care for student development.

The DTA is the university’s highest recognition of teaching excellence, awarded to educators whose pedagogy, leadership and scholarship exemplify the transformative power of education. Recipients are nominated by students and colleagues, and assessed against rigorous criteria spanning excellence, inclusivity, curriculum renewal and impact.

Associate Professor Omar, from the Faculty of Law, is known for a teaching philosophy that challenges students to see law not as static doctrine, but as a living discipline deeply connected to human experience. Her approach is grounded in feminist pedagogy, intersectionality and a commitment to social justice, all of which shape the environment she creates in the classroom.

Law as a living discipline

“My approach to teaching is to bring an intersectional and interdisciplinary lens to how students think about the law,” she explained. “Across the different courses and levels I teach, the golden rule is encouraging students to think critically about what the law can do, and what it cannot do. We have to be honest about the limits of the law, and that honesty should influence their understanding of how it interacts with other fields.”
 

“Teaching is something I am passionate about.”

The award, Omar said, is deeply affirming.

“Teaching is something I am passionate about. I value the energy exchange with students and the exchange of ideas. Being recognised for my teaching is meaningful because it is a core part of my role, and one that connects closely with my research, my social responsiveness, and my position as deputy dean of undergraduate studies.”

It is particularly heartwarming because of the effort, thought and passion she brings to her role: “It is, to me, a shared mission with students.”

Omar’s scholarship and training frequently explore questions of social justice, particularly the complexities of sexual violence. Public law, she noted, offers a crucial framework for understanding how institutions and legal systems can advance transparency, accountability and justice.

“What gets students passionate about learning the law is understanding how procedures within the criminal justice system fit together, and how they can create pathways to justice or, sometimes, injustice. It is not always only about the outcome,” she added.

Broadening access to justice

Omar also convenes the faculty’s community service programme, which places students in real-world settings to provide legal support to disadvantaged people. “It makes a profound contribution to access to justice, and shows students, through experiential learning, that a law degree is both a privilege and a responsibility to effect change.”

She is also candid about the limits of the law in addressing violence.
 

“The law … cannot ‘fix’ the problem of murder and rape.”

“The law can respond after the fact, but it cannot ‘fix’ the problem of murder and rape. Law guides how we should engage one another, but there are limits to its enforcement, especially in a country with South Africa’s racialised history and deep inequalities,” she said.

“Law is most effective where it frames the inclusion of other interventions, like healthcare, social work and education.”

On artificial intelligence (AI), Omar offers a nuanced perspective. “AI can be hugely detrimental to the development of law students as critical thinkers, but it may also widen access to legal services. If students cannot think beyond an AI-generated opinion, they won’t be competitive or creative in the profession. There is a risk that AI could dilute knowledge by limiting curiosity and innovation,” she said.

But for clients, legal services that once demanded high costs may become far more accessible: “There is a social justice element there.”

At UCT Law, the aim is to train students to do “what the legal profession already does”, but with more efficiency. “We want to build a new generation of lawyers who can challenge the status quo and be leaders in their field. I am deeply appreciative of being recognised for contributing to this overarching project,” Omar said.

Other 2024 awardees are: Dr Kate Angier (School of Education), Dr Chiv Gordon (Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology), and Dr Juana Sánchez-Ortega (Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics).