Prof Madhava Menon outlines roadmap to reform 'sea of institutionalised mediocrity' in legal education

At a National Consultation organised by the Law Ministry during May 1-2, 2010, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described legal education in India as a “sea of institutionalised mediocrity with a few islands of excellence,” and stressed the need for dramatic reform in terms of its scope and quality. He wanted the legal education system to be sensitive to the needs of the marginalised sections of society, particularly in the context of globalisation and the retreat of the state from some of its traditional roles. He felt that in future, domestic legal mechanisms will increasingly interact with both international and foreign legal systems and that the law schools should prepare themselves to face consequent challenges. The reforms he suggested included multi-disciplinarity in legal studies, flexible curricula, improved service conditions for law teachers, continuing education programmes for legal professionals and placement-internship programmes for all students.

This subject has indeed received the attention of several expert committees recently, including the National Knowledge Commission and the Committee on Renovation and Rejuvenation of Higher Education (the Yash Pal Committee). These commissions and committees found three fundamental drawbacks in the objects, structure and content of legal education as it is being imparted in nearly a thousand law colleges in India, most of them functioning in the private sector.

First of all, the objects of legal education in the changing socio-economic context are neither clear nor prioritised. The Advocates Act and the Bar Councils seem to think that the only object of legal education is to produce lawyers to practise in courts. Today, people seek legal education for a variety of purposes: to meet the demands of trade, commerce, industry, governance and international relations. The practising profession itself is getting increasingly internationalised, warranting the study of other legal systems and practices. These multiple goals raise questions of content, structure and regulation.

Currently, the content of legal education is considered to be a function of the regulatory bodies (read Bar Council of India) and the universities are obliged to follow it. This has adversely affected curriculum development in terms of serving the multiple objects of legal education and inhibited innovation and experimentation that are essential for academic and professional excellence. In a sense, it has alienated law schools from its essential function of legal research and development.

Law grows when it engages with society and interacts with other branches of knowledge. Engagement with social problems and movements make legal education relevant and contextual. For this to happen, a liberal, holistic and decentralised approach to curriculum planning and development is necessary, for which each university teaching law should have the primary responsibility. This was the essence of the National Knowledge Commission's and the Yash Pal Committee's recommendations. In other words, according to the expert committees the future of legal education will depend on how the role of universities (law schools) is conceived on the one hand, and on what the goals and objects of legal education are determined to be, on the other. Whichever way one looks at the situation, one thing is clear: the existing regulatory mechanism under the Advocates Act, 1961 is far too weak and inadequate to chart the future course of legal education.

Access and equity are important considerations in higher education, and this is particularly so in law education. The Bar Council's efforts over the last 50 years did succeed in making the so-called legal education accessible to all sections and keeping the costs low for students. But in the process, quality was neglected or allowed to be diluted. Many universities practically avoided their responsibilities, and put the entire blame on the Bar Council. An attempt was made at the instance of the Bar Council to improve quality by introducing the five-year integrated LL.B. programme, and by establishing a series of autonomous National Law Schools. But they have remained islands “in a sea of mediocrity” — as the Prime Minister described it.

The challenge before legal educators and the regulators of higher education today is two-fold.

First, how to promote competitive excellence in a global context in the few National Law Schools and others of its kind that are maintaining some degree of quality in education. Secondly, how to take the mediocre institutions — which are too many in number — to improve their performance towards achieving some degree of professionalism and academic excellence in the shortest possible time.

The major problems cited in this regard are inadequacy of resources including lack of competent teachers in adequate numbers. Given that most of these institutions are privately managed and have very little investment and faculty resources, it is not possible to transform them unless the managements themselves mobilise the finances. Others that are in the government sector, including university departments, can prepare plans for development and seek funds from governments, Central and State. There exists a case to increase tuition fees and development charges while making the institutions provide better teaching and learning facilities to consumers of education.

Finally, if quality is to be improved the key institutions for regulating legal education should be the universities themselves. Let there be competition among universities to deliver quality educational services. The external regulator's function should be limited to setting goals, setting minimum standards, and facilitating the exercise of academic autonomy by individual institutions. In this regard, the proposal of the Knowledge Commission for a multi-member single regulator involving all stakeholders is an excellent idea that deserves attention. The shortage of teachers can be addressed partly through a flexible approach in faculty composition: this may include more visiting and adjunct teachers, partnership arrangements, contractual engagement of professionals and so on. There could also be an organised plan to prepare teachers by selected institutions with special support from government.

It will take a decade or more to create a research environment in the existing law schools, particularly for cutting-edge research that contribute to law reform and development. Meanwhile, the recommendation of the Knowledge Commission to set up a few advanced research centres that can attract available talent to plan and develop legal research is worthy of immediate attention. This is where the Central government should invest, as it did in the field of scientific and industrial research in the early 1960s and 1970s. They can be networked with the law schools of the region: this will be of mutual advantage.

The initiative on Second Generation Reforms developed by the Union Law Ministry (2010) and the Task Force on Legal Education constituted by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development should work together to develop a plan of action to push forward the agenda of legal education reforms. This should serve not only the needs of the practising profession but also the emerging demands of society and government for law trained persons. The Judicial Academies training judges should tie up with selected law schools of the region to enrich the content and process of judicial education and training, while providing opportunities to law schools to understand and inform themselves of the problems and challenges of the administration of justice. Bar Councils should set up a chain of continuing legal education centres, similarly tying up with law schools for mutual benefit. What the nation needs now is an organised movement involving legal educators, lawyers and judges, not only to learn the practice of law but to transform law and legal institutions to maximise justice in society and to put legal education at the centre for better governance under democracy and rule of law.

Source:- http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/article470073.ece?homepage=true

Lighting up lives - International Institute for Social Entrepreneurship (IISE)

This summer i am taking sessions on Human Rights at the International Institute for Social Entrepreneurs (IISE) in Thiruvanthapuram, Kerala (South India), an Institute that operates under the umbrella of Braille without Borders (BWB).The IISE focuses on leadership training in order to create social change. The participants, all over 22 years of age, are inspiring visionaries who mainly come from developing nations. All of them have overcome significant life challenges ranging from vision impairment, disability, poverty, war, discrimination and exploitation. They have a passion to make the world a better place and the strength to be forces of good rather than victims of circumstance.

Throughout IISE's 11-month programme, participants develop all the necessary skills to succeed as social innovators/entrepreneurs. Workshops and hands-on practice in the areas of management, public speaking, communication, leadership, fund raising, budgeting, bookkeeping, project proposal writing, marketing, public relations, computing with open software technology, and others, give IISE's participants all the necessary tools to start their own social projects. All selected participants receive a full scholarship, including travel costs, accommodation and a high-end course by international experts.To ensure high quality training, IISE accommodates a maximum of 32 participants per academic year.

Programme

The programme is especially designed for future social entrepreneurs. It cannot be compared with post graduate study and previous formal education is not necessarily required. Participants who apply for this program have to be committed to a personal dream project for social change, and have the personality and creative ideas to make this happen.

The program is created in a way that participants:
- Who are 22 years of age or older from various countries, cultures, religions, socioeconomic and educational backgrounds can work, live and learn together.
- Learn methods, techniques and theories that are relevant to their own project implementations
- Learn about social entrepreneurship through various case studies, practical projects and internships
- Will have gained the necessary basic skills to be able to start their own projects once they leave the IISE.

A Journey in Five Acts

The 11 month course is mainly based on the experiences of the founders of Braille Without Borders and supported by professors of universities throughout Kerala, voluntary McKinsey consultants and other experts in the fields of social entrepreneurship, development work, business and arts.

The curriculum is divided into 3 major parts:
A) Prologue (3 weeks)
B) A journey in five acts (10 months and one week)
C) Alumni program (indefinite)

A) Prologue:
The prologue is substantial, not only as an introduction to the program but also as a phase in which participants and catalysts (facilitators) have a chance to get to know each other.
The focus of these first three weeks is on prevention of conflicts which could arise due to differences in cultural and religious backgrounds.

The general topics are:
- Cultural diversity with the objective of tolerating and appreciating cultural differences
- Introduction to receiving and giving feedback and listening and asserting with the objectives to create an IISE communicational code of conduct
- Assessments of useful skills such as Math, Finance, English (colloquial and written), and computer with the objective to bring everyone to an equal level.
- Introducing one's own dream project in a first dream speech, with the objective to start with the preparation for this particular social project

B) A Journey in Five Acts
The journey in five acts is designed to provide the participants with all the relevant skills and knowledge needed to start their dream social project. The entire training is conceptualised around practical, hands-on activities. The chosen case studies and the actual projects become more and more real from act to act.

ACT ONE
An imaginative case study: in 2010 it was the MALAIKA ISLANDS.

Participants are confronted with the problems and circumstances of an imaginative country. They are divided into teams that work on a 10 week case study. The teams are taught to solve problems and develop theoretical projects. The given problems are all based on real-life examples. While the participants work on their case study, they will be provided with the following methods:

- Defining the problem
- Conducting a needs study
- Analysing data
- Generating options for possible solutions
- Conceptualisation
- Writing project descriptions
- Financing a project
- Finding the right donors
- Writing project proposals

All the projects are evaluated by an external jury, consisting of governmental leaders, social entrepreneurs and activists, CEOs of local companies and industries as well as and business entrepreneurs.

While the participants work in teams on their case study, they are required to implement their gained knowledge into their own social dream project. The progress of the development of their social projects is regularly be monitored by the catalysts.

ACT TWO
‘Leadership and Change’ (overcoming cultural taboos)

While Act One is rather hands-on and very technical, Act Two focuses more on soft skills such as communication, leadership skills and awareness (social marketing).

The following skills are taught:
- Campaigning and creating awareness                       
- Conflict management
- Mediation/coaching
- Negotiation/debate
- Team management
- Time management
- Awareness and social change
- Leadership skills
- Theatre, drama, public speaking

The practical implementation exists of a social marketing plan and a self produced radio play/feature in order to raise awareness about unnecessary cultural taboos.

ACT THREE
‘Getting Real’

In Act Three participants have a chance to implement all acquired methods and soft skills into the formation and management of real projects in the district of Thiruvananthapuram.
These projects are run under the umbrella of Braille Without Borders but are co-designed and conceptualised by the different IISE generations.

The following projects already underway:
1. A preparatory school for the blind
2. A research and development centre where low-cost, high quality and high value aid products and software are being developed
3. A theme park in the dark; an awareness centre.
4. A community development program, to assist the neighbouring community

The objectives of this act are the following:
- The implementation of all learned techniques into a real project
- Seeing a real project grow and develop
- Acquiring experiences in the building phase of social projects.

The findings, concepts and action plans are evaluated by an external jury. The jury exists of business managers and the presentations are held in an off-campus location.

ACT FOUR
‘Exploring the Real World’

This act is reserved for an internship in which participants put their acquired methods and leadership skills into practice in an NGO or corporate setting. The hosting party is asked to define a project that the intern can implement within two months. The projects vary from awareness campaigns, development of programs and curricula, conducting needs studies to a fundraiser.

Objectives of this act:
- Finding a role in unfamiliar surroundings
- Understanding one's own strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement
- Being fully responsible for execution of a given project

Participants are sent to their host organisations either alone or in pairs. Internships can be done all over India.

ACT FIVE
‘Back to the Dream’

Throughout the 11 month program, participants have implemented all the acquired skills into the design of their own projects.  Now it is time to finalise their portfolios and if possible, register their organisations. In addition supporters who are willing to commit to assist financially or through legal and organizational advice are found.

Objectives:
- Legalising and registering their social project
- Learning how to find and select a good team

During graduation, all portfolios are assessed by an external international jury. Participants hold a 15 minute public speech in which they explain their plan. Two grants are given to the most promising projects.

C) Alumni program
Though the graduates of the IISE have undergone intensive training in various skill sets which are essential to realise their social projects, it is important to offer guidance during the crucial period of the start-up phase.

The alumni program provides a platform to share each other's experiences, discuss problems and present possible solutions. Additionally, the IISE offers assistance especially for active graduates, by linking them to voluntary professional mentors.

This program contains of three different levels, which come with certain benefits and responsibilities:
1. Alumni program (a general forum for keeping in touch)
2. Fellowship program (A forum for graduates who are in the starting phase of their projects)
3. IISE ambassador network (a network for those who have achieved some success and can be seen as ambassadors for the International Institute for Social Entrepreneurs.)

The success of the IISE program can only be measured by those who go out into the world, realise their visions and create positive social change.

BCI chair Gopal Subramaniam interview (part 2): Foreign firms only once Indian lawyers 'reclaim business' | Interviews | Legally India |

The Bar Council of India (BCI) has been pivotal in the debate on the entry of foreign law firms. The Solicitor general and newly elected BCI chairman Gopal Subramaniam tells Legally India about what has to happen before foreign lawyers can practice here.

Legally India (LI): What is your take on the entry of foreign lawyers in India?
Gopal Subramaniam (GS): I think the issues are a little more complex and they may have a bearing on our democracy. Now, if say the entry of the foreign lawyers is necessary because of their expertise to deal with commercial matters, we have no less [expertise].

We are going to work on improving our skills and making sure that we are the best. And in fact what we have to do is really reclaim the business, which has even gone out of India, which we have lost out to other jurisdiction on account of adverse publicity of the Indian legal system.

And I say this very consciously that the Indian lawyer has to reclaim his business which has gone out. I think we need to first get it back. We need to be on a level playing field.

The second thing is the element of reciprocity - I think this is very important unless there is reciprocity there is no question of any further consideration.

LI: What do you mean by reciprocity? Many Indian lawyers are practicing abroad.
GS: Indian lawyers do not practice there because they are Indian lawyers. They practice there when they qualify to practice there under their rules. Reciprocity means if I allow you to practice here then you allow me to practice there.

But having said that let us understand how many actually can go and establish a law office in New York or London? See the kind of expenses which are involved for setting up the office there.

So we must understand that there are many issues which will have to be internally debated. Therefore I must say that at this juncture our profession has to be first looked upon.

Our legal community will be looked upon as an important resource base. We have to preserve the Indian lawyer - if we don’t preserve the Indian lawyer, it can have telling implications on the democracy.

Anything else can be considered later but at this stage I think the task before us is reorganising ourselves as capable, efficient lawyers at all levels.

I am talking about every lawyer in the trial court as fellow brethren, I am talking at all levels in all places. You have to bring about uniformity. You have to bring about high quality.

LI: In simple words, you are not in favour of the entry of foreign lawyers?
GS: At this stage I am not in favour of entering of foreign lawyers. This is without any doubt.

Link-http://www.legallyindia.com/20100423730/Interviews/bci-chair-gopal-subramaniam-interview-part-2-foreign-firms-only-once-indian-lawyers-reclaim-business

Moily's 2nd generation education reforms: transactional law LLBs, new unified law school entrance test

The Union Government has announced a 'National Consultation' to radically overhaul Indian legal education, which will include the introduction of a common admission test for all Indian law schools, three new super-specialised LLBs focusing on transactional, litigation or public law as well as shortening LLM courses to one year.

The major proposals include the creation of an entrance test that will apply to all law colleges in India, rather than just to national law schools like the Common Law Admissions Test (CLAT). The Government also wants to create three separate LLB programmes that specifically focus on training transactional, litigation or public lawyers, as well as to introduce a new one-year LLM degree.

Law minister Veerappa Moily, additional solicitor general Mohan Parasaran and Moily's special adviser T K Vishwanathan announced the radical reform plans at a press conference in Delhi today (21 April). Moily said that the law ministry was collaborating with the Bar Council of India (BCI) and National Law University Delhi to organise a National Consultation for a "second generation" of reforms in Indian legal education.

He explained that the consultation would create a road map to bring radical institutional reforms in legal education to meet not only the requirements of the bar but also the needs of trade, commerce and industry in view of the growing internationalisation of the legal profession. Moily said: "Our aim is to focus on legal education as an instrument of economic and social architecture. The aim of this National Consultation is that the advocate in a Munsif court can have access to a system of continuing legal education and he can aspire to appear before the Supreme Court."

Additional solicitor general Parasaran added that the Government was also proposing three specialised LLB courses, to enable students to focus on either of litigation, transactional or public law. "The syllabus in most of the law colleges is more than 20 years old and is not relevant to present-day requirements," said Parasaran. "Reforms are the need of the hour. We propose to have a common law entrance test for all the colleges across India just like we have a common entrance test for national law colleges."

Parasaran also announced that India would have a one-year LLM course, just as countries such as the US and UK. "The change has been proposed and the decision to this effect shall be taken in near future," he said. Parasaran continued: "There is a proposal to establish a National Council for quality and standards of legal education. Experts from all the fields, namely Bar Council of India, state Bar Councils, attorney general, solicitor general and various jurists and academicians shall prescribe the syllabus for the law colleges."

Moily also supported a compulsory entrance test to become a lawyer, mirroring the proposal by the new Bar Council of India chairman Gopal Subramaniam. "We are working in tandem with Bar Council of India and we support the proposal," said Moily. He also said hat in an era of globalisation there was a need to raise the standards of legal education in India. "The domain of the Indian lawyer shall be the entire world and not only this country." Moily also expressed concern over the fact that most law students joined the corporate sector after completing their degrees. One of the issues before the National Consultation would be why students from national law schools seemed to prefer careers in corporate law firms and how the legal education system could cater to the emerging needs of the new economy.

The National Consultation would also examine how to organise training and education for alternate dispute resolution systems, particularly arbitration. The National Consultation first meeting will be held on 1 and 2 May 2010, said Moily, and would be inaugurated by India's prime minister Manmohan Singh, with Moily presenting a vision document on the India's second generation of legal reforms. When asked about the issue of entry of foreign lawyers at today's press conference, Moily said that the Bombay High Court had already decided on the issue and the Government would deal with the issue at an appropriate stage after consultation with all the sectors on the issue.

Source:- Legally India

Law School Outreach Programme in Kerala

NUJS Kolkata professor Shamnad Basheer has begun a pilot project to increase access to the legal profession to those from poorer backgrounds, seeking to grow it into a mass movement with funding and involvement from lawyers and students across India. The project has already started in Assam and Bihar. We plan to start the project in Kerala by the second week of June.

The National law schools, widely seen as the pre-eminent legal institutions in India have become increasingly elitist over the years. A variety of factors have contributed to this, including the extremely high fee structures at these institutions, a very difficult entrance examination that now requires extensive and expensive coaching as a pre-requisite, and most importantly, a lamentable lack of awareness about law as a career amongst low income students in small towns, rural areas and other non mainstream institutions. 

The net result is that the current student composition at many of these schools lack any serious diversity and comprise mainly of English medium educated students from middle class or upper middle class families. The numbers from rural areas, small towns or non English speaking schools are deplorable. Apart from this, the composition also suffers from under-representation from the disabled community, minority commmunities, ethnic groups etc. This project therefore seeks to find ways to reach out to “under-represented” groups and help those interested to acquire admission to these law schools. It is hoped that such access to the under-represented would not only empower them and the communities that they represent, but also increase the diversity at law schools and make for a more optimal melting pot of views and perspectives.

For the immediate future, we hope to execute pilot projects in identified areas/schools and identify promising candidates, based inter-alia on aptitude tests. We then guide the selected students, help them through the CLAT process and train them for taking the CLAT exam. CLAT is one of the biggest “access” bottlenecks in so far as candidates from under-represented areas are concerned. Therefore, supporting students to take CLAT is one of the most critical components of this program. We’ve been lucky enough to have several training centres agree to give us materials free of cost for distribution. Apart from this, we will impart CLAT training through online educational platforms.

Since many students would have come from non English speaking backgrounds, we plan to administer “English” language training as well. Here again, we would do it through a combination of online and offline modules. Even amongst the students that do well in our aptitude test, we try and select under-represented categories based on gender, ethnic and economic background, so as to provide for an optimally diverse mix. Once under-represented students make it through CLAT, we offer them a full tuition fee waiver, if they fall below a certain income level. Further, we also institute specific scholarships (based on contributions from law firms, alumni and others that believe in this cause) to help students gain stipendiary money as living expenses and to buy books, a laptop etc. We also try and get the law schools to offer some part time jobs in the library etc so they can make some pocket money.

The project will also aim to advertise scholarship programmes, highlight law as a career option,etc. For the success of the programme we need volunteers to help us in all possible ways. You can help us in preparing materials or taking classes or in other ways. You have various options through which you can help us. All those who are really interested in participating in this mass movement; please do let me know at the earliest. Mail me your expression of interest.

With regards,

Raghul Sudheesh

Coordinator

Law School Outreach Programme

Email:-raghulsudheesh@gmail.com

Ph:-94473 23332