The Office of the Attorney General on 28TH August,2024 convened a highly anticipated consultative meeting with key stakeholders, including the President of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), Chairpersons of the Kenya School of Law (KSL), the Council for Legal Education (CLE), the Kenya Law Reform Commission (KLRC) and their respective Chief Executive Officers. The meeting was held in response to the widespread concerns raised by students and other stakeholders in the legal education system.
The concerns were related to; –
• The Admission Criteria for Law Students to the Advocates Training Programme;
• Transparency of the examination process administered by the Council of Legal Education;
• Budgetary allocation for Legal Sector Institutions (KSL and CLE);
• The Fees chargeable for Law Students for the Advocates Training Programme; and
• Budgetary support for needy students seeking to enroll for the Advocates Training Programme under the Kenya School of Law.
The meeting resolved to establish a Working Committee under the stewardship of the Chairperson of the Kenya Law Reform Commission, to consolidate and harmonize the concerns raised by students, including the implications of the various court pronouncements on the subject matter. The Committee is expected to develop a Report within a period of two months, that will inform the implementation of the requisite reform interventions, including the recommendations as enumerated in the Taskforce Report on the Legal Education Sector Reforms.
The committee will in due course be reaching out to the members of the public, and in particular affected students, to submit their views and memoranda, on additional proposals and interventions to address the concerns.
The Office of the Attorney General reiterates the Government’s commitment to ensuring that Kenya’s legal education system remains of the highest standard and that the concerns of all stakeholders, particularly students, are addressed in a timely and effective manner.