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The Administration of the University of Guyana has lobbied the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, S.C to make a case before the Council of Legal Education for the number of Guyanese gaining automatic entry into the Hugh Wooding Law School to be increased from 25 to 40, and for there to be a new and long term agreement with both the University of the West Indies and the Council.
Vice Chancellor of the University of Guyana, Professor Dr. Paloma Mohamed Martin; Registrar of the University of Guyana, Dr. Nigel Gravesande; and the Head of the Department of Law of the University of Guyana, Kim Kyte-Thomas met with the Attorney General on Monday. Pritima Kissoon, State Solicitor, Public Trustee and Official Receiver, and Raeanna Clarke, State Counsel were among those present.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Attorney General four primary issues were raised by the visiting delegation chief among them was the need to establish a new long term agreement with officials of the University of the West Indies and the Council of Legal Education.
Such an agreement should also pave way for the number of Guyanese graduates from the University of Guyana Law Programme to be increase from 25 to 40.
“Settling the number of non-Guyanese graduates of the UG Law Programme gaining entry into any of the three law schools in the Caribbean Region namely, the Norman Manley Law School in Jamaica, the Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad and the Eugene Dupuch Law School in the Bahamas,” was another issue raised.
The delegation also made a case for the inclusion of the University of Guyana in deliberations of the Council of Legal Education on the issues affecting the University of Guyana. In respect of this issue, it was noted that the University of Guyana is one of the Universities given express recognition in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas and accordingly should be properly included in deliberations of the Council of Legal Education.
The Attorney General, who is an Executive Member of the Council, said he will attend the next meeting of the sub-committee of the Council and the University of Guyana, and make a case for the agreements to move ahead.
Nandlall was also keen to highlight that Guyana was one of the few States to make prompt and timely payments to the Council of Legal Education.
The Attorney General also used this opportunity to introduce the delegation to the State’s new prosecutorial programme which seeks to build capacity and improve the proficiency of police prosecutors and requested that the programme be done at the University of Guyana.
The Attorney General explained that the one year programme will cater for approximately 40 students who possess a Bachelor of Laws (LLB). These students will be trained to prosecute in the various Magistrates’ Courts throughout the country. The Legal Affairs Minister indicated that the syllabus is being completed by a consultant and with UG’s agreement, the programme will start in the academic year commencing September, 2021. The UG delegation welcomed the idea of the programme and pledged to accommodate the programme at the University of Guyana.
