Ethiopia’s 2006 Legal Education Reform Programme: Aspirations and Standards

Abstract

Ethiopia’s Legal Education Reform Programme (launched in 2006) was based on series of studies which identified the problems in Ethiopia’s legal education, the causes and consequences of the problems and the standards that are required to be attained by law schools. After more than a decade, however, the level of compliance with the standards is still an issue of concern. This calls for self-assessment by each law school based on check-list regarding (i) the level of awareness about the standards for Ethiopian law schools, (ii) standards that are partly achieved and should be enhanced, (iii) what has not been achieved and should be pursued, and (iv) the problems that have been aggravated. Such self-assessment requires closer examination into the entry point (i.e., student admission and academic staff employment), inputs, processes, student-learning environment, and outputs. This article discusses the factors that necessitated the 2006 legal education reform programme and examines the core elements of the reform without, however, dealing with the details on achievements and challenges. Key terms Legal education · Quality · Standards · LL.B programmes · Reform · Ethiopia