Jules Browde

Jules Browde (1919 – 31 May 2016) was a South African advocate and acting judge as well as a human-rights activist and Jewish communal leader. He was a classmate of Nelson Mandela's and a founder member of Lawyers for Human Rights.

Career Browde graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and then joined the Union Defence Force in the early part of the Second World War. At the end of the war, he returned to Wits to continue his education; during that time, he became friends with Nelson Mandela, a fellow law student.

In 1996, two years after South Africa's first democratic elections, Mandela appointed Browde to investigate irregularities in the appointment of various civil servants.

Awards and other activities In July 2008, Browde's service was acknowledged with the Sydney and Felicia Kentridge Award. The award is made by the South African Bar Council for excellence in public interest law.

In 2011, the SA Jewish Report recognized Browde and his wife Professor Selma Browde with the Helen Suzman Lifetime Achievement Award.