After years of debates and concerns over limited access to professional legal education in Ghana, H.E. John Dramani Mahama has signed the Legal Education Reform Bill, 2025, into law, ending the long-standing monopoly of the Ghana School of Law over professional legal training in the country.
The legislation paves the way for accredited universities to offer professional legal training, following years of calls from stakeholders who believed the old system made entry into the legal profession unnecessarily difficult.
Since its establishment in 1958, the Ghana School of Law had remained the only institution authorised to run the professional law course required for admission to the Ghana Bar. Over the years, however, concerns continued to grow over the school’s limited intake capacity, which left many qualified law graduates unable to continue their legal training.
The newly passed law is expected to significantly expand opportunities within the legal education sector by allowing qualified institutions to provide professional law programmes once they meet the necessary accreditation requirements.
Speaking during the signing of the bill on Monday, President Mahama explained that the reform seeks to balance quality legal education with increased accessibility.
“Regulate legal education and ensure the highest standards in terms of legal education, but also to open up a space for more opportunities for legal education in Ghana,” he stated.
He further noted that the reform is one many aspiring lawyers across the country have eagerly anticipated for years.
“This particular act has been one that many aspiring lawyers have been looking up to. So it’ll be fine,” he added.
The development has been widely welcomed by students, legal education advocates, and academics, many of whom have consistently argued that the previous system restricted access to the legal profession and created unnecessary barriers for qualified graduates.
Credit: Amenyawdebrah.com
.jpeg)
0 Comments