My Colleagues, Assistant Directors, Mbarara and Lira Campus, and Students, Ladies and gentlemen Good morning.
On behalf of the entire LDC Professional Advisors, I would like to extend a warm welcome to each of you as you embark on this exciting journey. Congratulations on taking the first step towards becoming a qualified Advocate!
The Bar Course Is Not an Island. It Is Supported by Other Government Institutions, LDC Departments, Sections and Unit e.g. HODs etc. They ensure that your stay is as comfortable as possible.
The Bar Course is a challenging yet rewarding experience that will equip you with the skills, knowledge, and expertise necessary to excel in your future careers.
Whereas it is a very challenging course requiring a great deal of hard work and with a steep learning curve, I am sure that you will find it both fulfilling and enjoyable.
Over the next nine months, you will study subjects designed to further your knowledge of law and procedures and learn skills that are essential for a one-day advocate.
Descriptions of and syllabuses for each of these can be found in the Rules governing the Bar Course 2023 as amended, and the syllabus shared.
Aims and objectives of the course
Our curriculum is a competency-based curriculum that focuses on students demonstrating mastery of specific skills and knowledge rather than accumulating credits or completing courses.
At LDC, we are Professional Advisors that have a duty to skill a one-day Advocate. We train you to create a solution to your client, which is legal advice. This is a student-centered approach to learning.
The Bar Course is designed to build upon the legal knowledge and allow you to acquire and develop the skills, knowledge and value necessary to for you to become an effective member of the Bar.
Bar course acts as the bridge between the academic study of law and the practice of law, enabling you to move from the classroom to the Court room.
Upon the successful completion of the Bar course, you will be eligible to be called to the Bar and be able to practice.
The Bar is a demanding profession. Advocates must demonstrate qualities and standards that justify the responsibility and trust placed in them by members of the public and other qualified professionals for whom work is referred.
They also play a vital role in the administration of Justice. As such, the public is entitled to expect standards of excellence from Advocates in the execution of their duties.
“The practice of law is not a vested right but a privilege; a privilege moreover clothed with public interest because a lawyer owes substantial duties not only to his client, but also to his brethren in the profession, to the courts, and to the nation, and takes part in one of the most important functions of the State-the administration of justice — as an officer of the Court. The practice of law being clothed with public interest, the holder of this privilege must submit to a degree of control for the common good, to the extent of the interest he has created”.
The Bar Course is designed to ensure that those who are called to the Bar have the appropriate level of skills and knowledge which they will provide legal services. As a result of the high standards required in practice, the Bar course must inculcate high standards throughout the delivery of the programme.
As you begin this new chapter, we encourage you to:
- Engage fully with the course materials and activities.
- Build meaningful academic relationships with your peers and PAs.
- Develop your skills through proactive participation.
- Seek guidance and support whenever needed either through Firm Leaders, Guild Council or individually. WE SHALL OPERATE AN OPEN-DOOR POLICY TO HEAR FROM YOU MORE, WE ARE, BECAUSE YOU ARE!
What subjects do I study?
The knowledge
- Criminal proceedings
- Civil Litigation
- Family Law Practice
- Land Transactions
- Corporate and Commercial Practice
- Professional Conducts and Ethics
The Skills
- Trial Advocacy
- Legal Writing and Drafts
- ADR
IT – you will be using IT throughout the course.
Pervasive
Legal Research and Case analysis will cut across all subjects.
The Structure of the Course
Term I -Course Tests- Professional Conducts and Ethics, Legal Writing and Drafting, ADR
Term 2 -Final Exams, Orals, Group Projects
Term 3 -Clerkship
Term 4-Final Examinations.
Term Dates and Teaching times
Classes will generally be timetabled between 8:00a.m and 4:00 p.m. Monday to Friday.
Friday afternoon is designated as Individual Assessment Day. You will have a maximum of 14 hours of contact time per week.
Assessments
In order to pass the Bar Course, you shall be subjected to the following mandatory assessments as provided for in these Rules:
(a) Attendance- at all Bar course sessions is Compulsory.
Attendance register will be taken during each session to monitor your attendance throughout the programme. Failure to sign the attendance register will mean you will be recorded as absent. Retrospective signing of the register is strictly prohibited. If your attendance falls below Bar course Rules requirements you will not pass the Bar course. You must attend and be prepared because the PAs are enjoined to ask you about your personal research.
(b) Individual Assessment (IA)
(c) Tests and/or take-home coursework assignments
(d) Clerkship
- Group Project- don’t take that you be an absentee landlord. Working together and get conversant with it.
- Clerkship Placement-Approved placements, which add value and relevant to give you practical experience and exposure.
(e) Examinations (written and oral including moots)- Professional Integrity-Dress code
Your future career as an Advocate requires you to comply with the highest standards of ethical conduct.
We shall have a Zero tolerance to examination malpractice in whatever form it manifests itself. It will not matter, the nature of consideration you will furnish. we shall hold each of you accountable for your role in the collective criminal endeavors. Crime will not pay.
-Prohibited materials, use of mercenaries are not allowed and the system is so brutal and uncompromising. YOU WILL NEVER BE RE ADMITTED AT LDC FOR ANY COURSE if found guilty of Examination Malpractice. Please desist from any Joint Criminal Enterprise.
1. Workshop Method
Learn by doing!
The sessions mostly take the form of realistic instructions to counsel to carry out some part of a one-day Advocate role in a particular case. The aim of all workshops is to give you an opportunity to practice your legal skills or demonstrate you knowledge of procedure within a small group setting.
If you do not do the preparatory work, you may well find that you don’t fully understand the tasks that you are being asked to carry out.
2. Large group sessions- even in the large classes you will be noticed.
3. Guest Lectures
4. Assessments – Pass mark is 50%
We are committed to supporting your academic and professional growth on mutual respect and understanding.
Once again, welcome to the Law Development Centre! A tradition of legal excellence!
We look forward to witnessing your professional growth and success.
I thank you.
Robert Mackay
Ag. Head Department of Post Graduate Legal Studies and Legal Aid.
