A recent study commissioned by a regional group is highlighting unfair admission polices administered by Law Schools throughout CARICOM and is recommending changes to the process.
The findings are contained in the Final Report on Legal Education in CARICOM Member States which was Prepared by the IMPACT Justice Project and funded by the Canadian government.
The report highlights the status and relevance of the current legal education system; the extent to which it meets the needs of the students; and concerns of discrimination in access to legal education and by extension, the legal profession.
Regional Project Director for Impact Justice Professor Velma Newton says a wide range of people were canvassed during the assessment period.
Professor Newton says the system which requires students earning degrees from other institutions to sit an entrance exam was set up in the 1970s and has outlived its purpose.
The group is calling for the entrance exam to be done away with because it is discriminatory.
They are also recommending that the Council of Legal Education be transformed into an accreditation body to approve the setting up of other law schools in countries such as Antigua and Guyana, to meet the growing demand.
Regional Project Director for Impact Justice Professor Velma Newton