Legal Education Overhaul: Supreme Court PIL Calls for Course Review

A PIL filed in the Supreme Court seeks the establishment of a legal education commission to review the duration and curriculum of five-year law courses in India. The petition argues that the current course length is excessive and financially burdensome, clashing with the NEP 2020's four-year course framework.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court, advocating for the creation of a legal education commission to evaluate the existing five-year law courses in India.

The plea, submitted by Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, highlights that the New Education Policy (NEP) 2020 endorses four-year graduation programs across professional and academic fields. However, the Bar Council of India (BCI) has yet to update the syllabus, curriculum, and the duration of Bachelor of Law (LLB) and Master of Laws (LLM) courses according to this new standard.

The PIL contends that the extended five-year duration of BA-LLB and BBA-LLB courses imposes an unreasonable financial burden on students, raising concerns about the proportionality of course material to course duration.

(With inputs from agencies.)