Mark Oppenheimer graduated from UCT in 2007 and has been a practicing advocate and member of the Johannesburg Bar for 15 years. He has appeared in the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court in a series of cases that seek to determine the boundary between freedom of expression and genuine hate speech.

He is frequently a guest on South African television to discuss human rights and the rule of law. Mark has authored submissions to Parliament on the Hate Speech Bill and to the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination on escalating racial tensions.

Mark co-hosts a weekly discussion show interviewing prominent academic philosophers from around the world. He has published a book on the philosophy of law and a series of popular philosophy books.

He is the president of the South African Institute of Race Relations and a member of the Rule of Law Project’s Board of Advisors.