Supreme Court Stops Law School Admissions

Prof Stephen Kwaku Asare

The Supreme Court has described as unconstitutional the admission procedure used by the Ghana School of Law that requires applicants to take an entrance exam and subsequently be interviewed before gaining admission.

According to the court, the requirement is contrary to L.I. 1296.

Delivering the court’s decision yesterday, Justice Sulley Gbadegbe ordered the General Legal Council (GLC) to use the appropriate means to pass the required regulation for whatever admission process they intend to use.

The court, however, directed that the ongoing admission process for the 2017/2018 academic year is not affected by the decision of the court. He added that the GLC is to commence implementation within six months.

The court further recommended a quota system to be put in place for accredited institutions across the country.

In October 2015, Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare, a United States-based Ghanaian lawyer, proceeded to the apex court over the legality of the modes of admission used by the Ghana School of Law to admit LLB holders into the Professional Law Course by the school.

He contended that the number of people who are admitted into Law School is woefully small, considering the number of people who possess LLB.

The professor prayed the Supreme Court to declare that GLC’s imposition of entrance examination  and interview requirements for the Professional Law Course  violate Articles 11 (7) 297 (d) 23, 296 (a) (b) and 18 (2) of the 1992 Constitution.

He is seeking a declaration that GLC’s exclusion of persons who have qualified under Regulation 2 of LI 1296 from pursuing the Professional Law Course violates Article 11 (7) 297 (d), 23, and 296 (a) and (b) of the Constitution.

The plaintiff is also praying the court for an order directed at GLC to specify within 60 days alternative places and modes of instructions that afford all persons meeting the requirement of Regulation 2 of LI 1296 an opportunity to pursue the profession component of legal education, the completion of which entitles them to take the qualifying certificate examinations as determined by GLC.

By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson

jeffdegraft44@yahoo.com