Parliament has passed the Legal Education Reform Bill, 2025, introducing sweeping changes to Ghana’s legal training system and expanding access to professional legal education.
The legislation establishes a new Council for Legal Education and Training, which will regulate legal education and set curriculum standards across institutions.
The move is expected to address longstanding concerns about limited access and centralised control under the current framework.
A major shift under the new law is the relocation of professional legal training from the Ghana School of Law to accredited universities. These institutions will now offer a Law Practice Training Course designed to equip graduates with practical skills ahead of a National Bar Examination.
Explaining the rationale behind the reforms, the Bill notes that the existing Legal Profession Act, 1960 (Act 32) leaves legal education insufficiently regulated and combines oversight of legal training with the regulation of legal practice under the General Legal Council.
Under the new framework, the Law Practice Training Course will focus heavily on practical training. “The Bill introduces a Law Practice Training Course, which will be offered by accredited universities to prepare eligible candidates for a National Bar Examination,”* the document states.
It adds, *“The Law Practice Training Course will consist mainly of clinical legal education that emphasises the acquisition of practical lawyering skills over theoretical legal education.”
Graduates holding a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) or equivalent qualifications will be required to gain admission into an accredited university programme before qualifying to sit for the Bar exam.
Speaking on the floor of Parliament, Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga described the passage of the Bill as a fulfillment of the governing party’s promise to law students. “As has been typical of the NDC, promises made are delivered. We promised law students that if they vote for us, we will carry out reforms that will ensure equity, fairness and access to legal education,” he said.
However, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin cautioned the government against selective delivery of campaign promises. While acknowledging bipartisan support for the Bill, he remarked, “All of us have participated. This is not a bill that is identified with a particular party.”
He added, “Mr Speaker, however, they equally promised that they were going to set up a bank for women… we have not seen the Women Bank.”
The reform is widely seen as a major decentralisation of legal education in Ghana, opening up opportunities for aspiring lawyers to pursue professional training beyond a single institution while maintaining national standards.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
