President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his condolence to the family of retired Constitutional Court Justice Yvonne Mokgoro who was the first black female judge of the ConCourt.She passed away at the age of 73 yesterday after being hospital for months following a car accident last year. Paying tribute to Mokgoro, Ramaphosa said as a black female judge, she was a pioneering embodiment and contributor to the transformation of the country and the legal system.

In a statement, the President said: "Justice Mokgoro distinguished herself as an academic, a justice of our apex court, Chairperson of the South African Law Commission and as a strategic advisor to a diversity of boards in different sectors. Her insightful and principled counsel lives on in the thousands of legal careers she shaped in the course of her academic endeavours."

The President also said that Mokgoro distinguished herself as an academic, a justice of the apex court, chairperson of the South African Law Commission and as a strategic advisor to a diversity of boards in different sectors. "Her insightful and principled counsel lives on in the thousands of legal careers she shaped in the course of her academic endeavours. She has left us under very tragic circumstances and we therefore join the family in their sadness and in their prayers that this beloved mother, patriot, leader and citizen of the globe will rest in peace.' South African Press Council deputy chairperson, Amina Frense, who served with Justice Mokgoro on the appointments Panel said: "A giant tree has fallen. She will be remembered for her unwavering commitment to freedom of expression and the ethical values espoused by the press council. We wish her family, her colleagues and all of us who knew,''

Mokgoro was born in Galeshewe township near Kimberly died at the age of 73. She was married to former North West Province Premier, Professor Job Mokgoro. Mokgoro served as a Judge from 1994 until 2009. She chaired the South African Law Reform Commission between 1995 and 2011. She qualified as a lawyer in the former Bophuthatswana and was a legal academic before she was appointed to the bench by President Nelson Mandela. According to her impressive CV, she obtained a Bachelor of Jurisprudence (B Juris) degree at the then University of Bophuthatswana (now North-West University), in 1982, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) two years later, and a Master of Laws (LLM) degree in 1987. After completion of her LLB, she was appointed maintenance officer and public prosecutor in the then Mmabatho Magistrates Court. She also studied at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States of America (USA), where she obtained a second LLM degree in 1990. She is survived her husband, who is also an academic, their five children and grandchildren.