-had failed HWLS entrance exam twice, endured many other challenges

IF at first you don’t succeed, you have to try again because failure is just a stepping stone to success. This is exactly why 27-year-old Natesha Moseley refused to let failed attempts to get into law school or naysayers curtail her dream of becoming a lawyer.

On October 29, 2021, she reaped the rewards of her efforts when she was admitted to the bar in Guyana.

Describing her journey to becoming an attorney as a “rocky” one, the former Brickdam Secondary student shared that she had faced overwhelming psychological and financial challenges that could’ve daunted her pursuit of becoming a lawyer. Through it all, she was determined not to let go of a dream she has had since she was a little girl.

“Many nights I cried because I felt as though my dreams were starting to fade. Nothing was working for me, no matter how hard I tried,” Moseley expressed.
Moseley’s petition was presented by attorney-at-law Timothy Jonas, S.C., before Chief Justice (ag), Madam Roxane George.

In her bar call speech, the Providence, East Bank Demerara resident credited her strong belief in God, and the support system from her family and friends which she said helped her to push against the pitfalls and cynics.

“A famous Bible quote that stood with me throughout my journey of becoming an attorney-at-law was Philippians 1:6 which states, ‘Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.’ The same God who has started a great work within me, is the same God who completed it to the end,” she said.

Moseley also believes that some of her setbacks were God’s way of preparing her with an even stronger groundwork for her final career.

“I was held back for a reason I did not understand. This led me into depression and discouragement but today I now understand my many hurdles were God preparing me so I can walk into my season with a strong foundation and an appreciation of all the challenging times,” she related.

Growing up with her parents and siblings at Providence, Moseley had known she wanted to be a lawyer from a very young age and felt that it was part of her divine destiny to pursue the profession.

“Reaching out to younger children in my community and my church group, I would listen to each child’s problem, and begin to create solutions to make a change that will benefit them in the long run. Many of them were faced with depression, family breakdown, and domestic violence. From there I developed a passion for family law,” she shared.

Armed with her calling, Moseley began taking steps in this direction.
After obtaining 11 subjects at the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations, she went on to do the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) at The Bishops’ High School, where she obtained eight units, including Law and Sociology.

In 2014, she would then begin her Law Degree at the University of Guyana, which she completed in 2017. However, her seamless academic succession would hit a roadblock when she wrote the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) entrance exam in 2017 and was short of passing by just four points. She would try again a year later and once again fell short, this time be just two marks.

“I was told by two church members that law was not for me. They both told me to change my career because they do not think that was my calling. I was so ashamed of my performance, but this failure did not stop me,” she expressed.

During this time, as she waited to get into law school, Moseley did her in-service training at the Kingston-based De Caires, Fitzpatrick & Karran Law Firm, an internship programme at the Court of Appeal, and also served as a Legal Assistant at the Court of Appeal under the supervision of the Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag), Justice Yonette Cummings-Edwards.

Her time serving in these various posts only worked to strengthen her resolve to one day serve as an attorney.
“The more I came into contact with lawyers or judges, or anything pertaining to the law it all made sense. God was reminding me of His promises and that kept me going,” she said.

And kept going she did, with the third time being the charm for a passionate, determined Moseley. She wrote the entrance exam a year after her second attempt and was successful.
But getting into the Trinidad-based law school was just one step, as the challenges did not stop there.

“I would oftentimes be thinking whether I would have the funds to complete my studies at the Hugh Wooding Law School. I did not have access to a lot of materials for certain courses,” she shared
Nonetheless, with each hurdle she continued to persevere and push through, and today having succeeded she hopes that her story could stand as a beacon of encouragement to others.

“Now I can share my story and encourage others who may want to give up on their dreams,” she said.