President John Dramani Mahama has signed the Legal Education Bill, 2026, into law, marking a fundamental shift in how lawyers are trained in Ghana. The ceremony took place at Jubilee House today (Monday, May 11), after which the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, briefed the press. With the President’s assent, the legislation is now officially known as the Legal Education Act.
If you are an aspiring lawyer or an LLB graduate who has been stuck in the admissions backlog, here is what this means: you may no longer need to go through the Ghana School of Law’s centralized entrance examination system. The new law ends the institution’s 66-year monopoly on professional legal training and opens the door for accredited universities across the country to run professional law programs.
This matters because for decades, thousands of qualified LLB graduates have been unable to secure admission to the Ghana School of Law due to limited capacity and a highly competitive admissions process. The reform is designed to create a more inclusive, merit-based path to becoming a lawyer in Ghana while maintaining professional standards.
The End of a 66-Year Monopoly: From Exclusion to Inclusion
Since October 1958, the Ghana School of Law (popularly known as “Makola”) had been the sole institution authorized to train students for the Ghana Bar. That created a bottleneck: only a fraction of LLB graduates could gain admission each year, leaving thousands without a clear path to complete their legal education.
The new law abolishes that centralized system. Dr. Ayine described the legislation as a “much anticipated reform” designed to create equality of opportunity for all persons aspiring to become lawyers in the country.
“We are shifting from exclusion to inclusion,” the Attorney General stated, “ensuring all qualified LLB holders have a clear and merit-based path to becoming lawyers.”
Key Provisions of the New Law: What Changes for Aspiring Lawyers
The Legal Education Act introduces several interconnected changes to the structure of legal training in Ghana. Here is how the new system will work.
1. Professional Training Moves to Accredited Universities
Under the new framework, law graduates will no longer be required to attend the Ghana School of Law to pass the Bar. Instead, universities that meet national standards can now run professional legal training program, increasing access and easing pressure on a single institution.
2. Council for Legal Education Established
The legislation establishes a new Council for Legal Education and Training to regulate legal education and set curriculum standards across all accredited institutions. This body will accredit law faculties and supervise the new national bar examination.
3. National Bar Examination Replaces Centralized Admissions
Perhaps the most significant change is the introduction of a standardized National Bar Examination, modeled after the system used by the Institute of Chartered Accountants. All LLB graduates who complete their professional training are expected to sit for this common examination, regardless of which university they attended.
4. New Training Model: Three Years of LLB Plus One Year of Clinical Training
The new system requires prospective lawyers to complete a three-year LLB degree, followed by a one-year clinical legal programs (also known as the Bar Practice Course) at their respective institutions. This course will focus on practical lawyering skills over theoretical legal education.
| Old System (Pre-2026) | New System (Effective 2026) |
|---|---|
| Ghana School of Law has sole monopoly over professional legal training | Accredited universities can offer professional legal training programs |
| Entrance examination required for admission to Ghana School of Law | No centralized entrance exam; standardized National Bar Examination at end of training |
| Limited capacity creates annual admissions backlog | Multiple institutions increase overall training capacity |
| Admission controlled by Ghana School of Law and General Legal Council | Oversight by new Council for Legal Education and Training |
Standards Will Not Be Compromised, Says Chief Justice
When Parliament passed the bill on March 26, 2026, Chief Justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie gave a firm assurance that the reforms would not lower the bar for entry into the legal profession.
“It introduces a new framework that seeks to expand access without compromising standards,” the Chief Justice said at the March Call to the Bar ceremony, where 155 new lawyers were enrolled at the University of Ghana, Legon. “Institutional bottlenecks will be reduced, and the longstanding backlog of students awaiting professional training will be addressed.”
The Chief Justice noted that Ghana had long struggled to balance expanding access to legal education with maintaining professional standards. “The result has often been tension between numbers and quality, between opportunity and credibility. We are now resolving that tension,” he said.
President Mahama himself emphasized that the reform seeks both to maintain high standards and widen access, achieving two goals at once.
What Happens to This Year’s Entrance Exams? (Unresolved)
While the new law has been signed, confusion remains about whether the entrance examination scheduled for July 31, 2026, will still take place. Two conflicting positions have emerged.
Majority Chief Whip Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor has stated that entrance examinations, as previously known, no longer exist effective immediately. “The entrance exams, as we know, no longer exist effective immediately,” he said. He explained that admission standards and processes will now be standardized across all accredited law schools.
However, Old Tafo MP Vincent Ekow Assafuah has raised concerns, arguing that the Independent Examination Council (IEC), not the Ghana School of Law, is responsible for organizing the exams. He notes the IEC had already scheduled this year’s examination for July 31, 2026, and has called on the government to provide clear information on whether it will proceed.
What this means for you: If you are a law student who has already applied to write the entrance examination in July, the exact status remains unclear. The government has not yet issued a definitive public statement on whether the July 31 examination will proceed. Monitoring official announcements from the Ministry of Justice and the Council for Legal Education and Training in the coming days is advisable.
Implementation Timeline and Next Steps
The government has signaled that implementation will begin without delay. Here is what to expect in the coming months.
Immediate Actions
With presidential assent now granted, Dr. Ayine announced that implementation would begin immediately, starting with the establishment of the Council for Legal Education. The process of accrediting law schools to run the law practice course for holders of Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degrees will also commence this year.
2027 Budget Provisions
Dr. Ayine indicated that budgetary provisions for the full implementation of the new legal education framework would be made in the 2027 budget, which the Finance Minister is expected to present to Parliament in November 2026.
What Should Prospective Law Students Do Now?
If you are currently an LLB student or have completed your LLB degree, here are practical next steps:
- Stay informed: Follow announcements from the Ministry of Justice and the newly established Council for Legal Education.
- Complete your LLB degree: The current academic year’s LLB programs continues as normal. The reforms affect professional training, not the academic LLB itself.
- Monitor entrance exam status: If you have already registered for the July 31 entrance examination, watch for official confirmation from the IEC regarding whether the examination will proceed or be canceled.
- Check university accreditation status: Once the Council for Legal Education begins accrediting universities, you will have multiple options for where to complete your professional training.
Sources
- Graphic Online: “President Mahama signs Legal Education Reform Bill into law” (May 11, 2026)
- Information Services Department: “President Mahama Assents to Legal Education Act” (May 11, 2026)
- Ghana News Agency: “Legal Education Reform Bill will not compromise standards – Chief Justice” (March 28, 2026)
- Adomonline.com: “Law School entrance exams abolished under new reforms – Dafeamekpor” (May 11, 2026)
- The Ghana Report: “Assafuah demands clarity after Legal Education Bill assent” (May 11, 2026)
