Legal Education Challenges & Reforms in 21st Century

All India Seminar on Global Legal Education by Confederation of Indian Bar In Association with KIIT

Prof.(Dr.) Tabrez Ahmad

Director- College of Legal Studies

University of Petroleum & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Version 2

Contents

A. Status of Legal Education in India

B. Challenges

C. Further Up-gradation & Reforms

D. Suggestions

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

A-Status of Legal Education in India

1. Around 3 Lakh students join Legal education every year

2. Around 50 thousand students are aspiring to go for good quality legal education annually.

3. Around 70-75 Thousand students passes every year with a law degree

4. Around 30-35 Thousand students joins the Bar

5. Currently there are 15 Lakh registered advocates in different Bars in India

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

A-Status of Legal Education in India cont…

6. Due to New experiment of National Law University Model started in the form of National Law School of India University Bangalore in 1987. We are able to attract the talented and potential students for legal education

7. We have currently 18 National Law Universities- No. of seats- around 2500

8. We have good quality Central/State University Law Dept- seats around 1250

9. We have good quality Private University Law Schools- seats around 1500

10. Total availability as per the demand is only 15%

11. Remaining 85% law graduates passing out from professionally non-competent law schools.

12. Mostly they ( around 35,000) target the lower courts and lower Judiciary annually

13. Major focus and reforms are required in these low grade laws schools

14. Further up gradation and excellence required in Top Law schools on a Global Benchmark

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

A-Status of Legal Education in India-Cont.. a. Interdisciplinary courses

• We are able to do interdisciplinary linkages and provide full fledged and specialized degree courses/programs on :

• Law & Social Science

• Law & Commerce

• Law & Business Management

• Law & Science

• Law & Technology

But no law school in India able to launch full fledged degree programs on:

Natural Resources & Law

Medical Science & Law etc.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

b. Gaps between law in books and law in action

• We are also able to go on minimizing the gaps between law in books and law in action like:

• Promoting the application of Clinical legal education

• Student internships during the course

• Faculty internships during the course

• Required inputs from the practicing lawyers, judges and law officers/managers holding the leadership positions in the Corporate world.

• But the practice is followed mostly in National Law Universities and good private law schools while in the govt. law schools and small private law schools it is very rare.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

c. Curriculum as per the professional needs

• To 15% Law graduate producing schools are able to go on updating the curriculum and syllabus as per the changing time.

• But the practice is very rare in the 85% Law graduate producing schools

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

d. Teaching of skills and outcome based process.

• It is very rare and depends on the institution and a particular faculty

• Law being a challenging professional course the entire focus should be on out come based teaching-learning process and skill development.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

B-Challenges

1. Lack of full fledged refined and updated common curriculum at national level as per the need of the hour.

2. Though the CDC of BCI and UGC provided the syllabus of some courses but that is neither perfect nor updated even a single time since it was circulated by UGC 1997 and by the BCI in 2010.

3. Lack of professionally competent faculty

4. Lack of required library resources

5. Lack of proper utilization of technology in the teaching learning process

6. Difficult to retain good faculty due to big gaps between the salary of law teachers and the corporate law professionals

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

B-Challenges cont..

7. Attitude of the most of the law schools and law teachers that just to provide a degree than to create a professionally competent and skilled law professional

8. Attitude of the law students that just to get a degree than to transform themselves into an excellent law professional

9. Lack of vision of professional bodies and their control on mushrooming of non-competent law schools

10. Non Compliance of the most of the law schools of the BCI standards of Legal education implemented in 2010

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

C-Further up-gradation and reforms

• Major focus and reforms are required in the low standard laws schools producing 85% law graduates to make it at par with the national requirements

• Further Up-gradation and excellence required in the Top 15% law graduate producing Universities to make them comparable to the best in the world on a Global Benchmark

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

C-Further up gradation and reforms-cont..

1) setting goals,

2) organizing the program of instruction,

3) delivering instruction, generally,

4) conducting experiential courses,

5) employing non-experiential methods of instruction,

6) assessing student learning, and

7) evaluating the success of the program of instruction.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

How to go ahead and What to be done. -Setting Goals

1. Law schools should demonstrate a commitment to preparing their students for bar examinations and for law practice.

2. They should engage in a continuing dialogue with academics, practitioners, judges, licensing authorities, and the general public about how best to accomplish this goal.

3. Law schools should clearly articulate their educational goals and share them with their students.

4. Law schools should shift from content-focused programs of instruction to outcomes-focused programs of instruction that are concerned with what students will be able to do and how they will do it, as well as what they will know on their first day in law practice.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

How to go ahead and What to be done. -Setting Goals- Cont…

5. The primary goal of legal education should be to develop competence, that is, the ability to resolve legal problems effectively and responsibly.

6. Law schools should help students acquire:

a. the attributes of effective, responsible lawyers

b. including self reflection and lifelong learning skills,

c. intellectual and analytical skills,

d. core knowledge and understanding of law,

e. professional skills, and

f. professionalism.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Organizing the Program of Instruction

1. Law schools should organize their curriculums to develop knowledge, skills, and values progressively;

2. integrate the teaching of theory, doctrine, and practice; and teach professionalism pervasively throughout all three/five years of law school.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Delivering Instruction

1. Law schools should use teaching methods that most effectively and efficiently achieve desired educational objectives, employ context-based instruction throughout the program of instruction, and employ best practices when using any instructional methodology.

2. Law schools should create and maintain healthy teaching and learning environments.

3. Law schools should enhance the quality of their programs of instruction with technology and by making appropriate use of practicing lawyers and judges.

4. Law schools should have effective teacher development programs and establish learning centers

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Assessing Student Learning

Law schools should use best practices for assessing student learning, including criteria-referenced

• assessments, multiple formative and summative assessments, and various methods of assessment.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Evaluating the Success of the Program of Instruction

1. Law schools should regularly evaluate their effectiveness and use best practices for conducting such evaluations.

2. Many of the recommendations do not have cost or time implications, and others have none beyond the initial effort involved in making the transition from current practices. It will require hard work and, perhaps, additional or reallocated resources to implement some of the recommendations.

3. We have no doubt, however, that the major impediment to reforming legal education is a lack of vision and commitment, not a lack of resources.

4. Hopefully, this seminar provides some of the needed vision and will inspire more people to become committed to implementing positive changes in legal education.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Suggestions

1. Every disputed should be looked as a public interest dimension

2. 65 Skills which are fundamental to the success of a law profession are the outside of the realm of Law. therefore the students should also be engaged in the other interlinking areas.

3. Due to the growing importance of the mediation around 55% cases are settled through mediation process.

4. For the demand of Social justice we should no more only rely on adversarial system

5. No system can survive without a research & development. Therefore in-depth research is required to see the dimension of socio-economic context.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Suggestions cont…

6. To fill the gap of skill set required for a lawyer there should be one year diploma program which every one aspiring to become a lawyer should pass

7. Continuing legal education should be given utmost importance to upgrade the standards of Law teachers, lawyers and Judges

8. A comprehensive re-look of the entire legal education is required due to globalization by a high power committee

9. Every state should have an academy of lawyers and emphasis should be given on improving communication and research ability of the lawyers

10. A National level law teacher academy is required to be established to train and upgrade the teaching standards of law teachers. Special emphasis should be given to improve the skill of research, teaching and ethics.

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Suggestions cont…

11. A diploma for the law teachers should be started to fill the gap of required skills as a law teacher

12. We require a legal education Act passed by Parliament

13. We should establish a world class legal education and legal profession to sustain the challenges posed by the Globalization and convert the threat into a opportunity

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun

Thank You for your Attention

For any further query feel free to reach tabrezahmad7@gmail.com

Dr. Tabrez Ahmad, Director, College of Legal Studies, University of Petrolium & Energy Studies, Dehradun