A senior law lecturer at Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration(GIMPA), Clement Akapame, has welcomed Ghana’s new legal education reforms, describing them as a significant step toward improving access to professional legal training.
Speaking on Channel One TV on Wednesday, May 13, he said the reforms are expected to remove some of the barriers law graduates face when seeking admission into professional law programmes. However, he stressed that the success of the reforms would depend largely on how they are implemented.
Mr Akapame argued that the reforms should not focus only on the training of lawyers but should also address the broader legal services sector. He also raised concerns about possible ambiguities surrounding the definition of law programmes and potential overlaps between the General Legal Council and institutions responsible for regulating legal education.
He further called for a phased implementation process to allow stakeholders to address emerging challenges and provide clarity for students and institutions affected by the changes.
According to him, additional guidance from policymakers in the coming days would help ensure the smooth enforcement of the new legal education framework across the country.