… At independence, legal training was designed around a relatively small number of law graduates and a centralised professional training system anchored in the Ghana School of Law. …
… Whereas many law students celebrate the seeming dismantling of a 66-year monopoly held by the Ghana School of Law over professional legal education in the country, what clearly lies beneath is the fact that, the same old Makola-demands for diligence, may well never change technic …
… rns over admission limitations within the sector. “For decades, countless qualified law graduates faced significant structural barriers in accessing professional legal education, particularly through the limitations imposed by the long-standing monopoly of the Ghana School of Law …
… The Bill, which was signed into law by President John Dramani Mahama on Monday, May 11, is expected to transform professional legal education in Ghana by ending the long-standing monopoly of the Ghana School of Law over professional law training. …
… t also the culmination of sustained advocacy, courage, and unwavering commitment from these individuals who, according to him, have challenged the “status quo in pursuit of the greater good.” Read also: Mahama signs Legal Education Reform Bill into law, ending Ghana School of Law …
… His comments follow President John Dramani Mahama’s assent to the Legal Education Reform Bill, 2025, which effectively ends the 66-year monopoly of the Ghana School of Law over professional legal education in Ghana. …
The Legal Education Act, 2026 (Act 1170) and interim policy directives represent Ghana's most significant legal education reform since 1960, addressing a longstanding debate among legal educators, practitioners, and judges about the boundary between substantive legal education and professional legal training and who should deliver each.
Why it matters
New Legal Education Act 2026 marks Ghana's most significant legal reform since 1960, reshaping how lawyers are trained.
The Legal Education Act, 2026 (Act 1170) and interim policy directives represent Ghana's most significant legal education reform since 1960, addressing a longstanding debate among legal educators, practitioners, and judges about the boundary between substantive legal education and professional legal training and who should deliver each.
Former Director of the Ghana School of Law Kwaku Ansa-Asare has criticised the Council of State's composition as overwhelmingly partisan, arguing that members cannot freely express independent opinions and suggesting this may have contributed to recent high-profile resignations, including former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo's departure.
Legal academic Kwaku Ansa-Asare has argued that former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo's appointment to the Council of State was constitutionally flawed because it bypassed a more senior and constitutionally appropriate retired Chief Justice. He also criticized the government for delaying the public announcement of Akuffo's resignation until after it leaked to media.
A senior legal academic has argued that the Office of the Special Prosecutor's failure to obtain prior authorisation from the Attorney General created the procedural vulnerability that a US immigration court exploited in granting former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta permanent residency. The court considered evidence relating to the OSP's actions, including declaring him a fugitive while he was receiving medical treatment in the United States, and found the criminal charges against him to be "not credible."
An analysis in The Chronicle examines the legal and governance implications of interim policy directives issued by the Ghana School of Law on 12 June 2026, which were issued to address a regulatory vacuum created by the new Legal Education Act, 2026, pending the constitution of the Council for Legal Education and Training.
Sara Araba Tettey, a 26-year-old newly qualified lawyer, suffered cardiac arrest and died while celebrating Ghana's victory over Panama in an opening World Cup match on June 17. She collapsed at a student hostel near KNUST in Kumasi and was rushed to hospital, where she was pronounced dead despite CPR efforts lasting approximately 45 minutes.
Ghana's Minister for Education disclosed that 312,448 students have benefited from the "No Fee Stress" policy across the 2024 and 2025 academic years, with a total cost of GHS888.8 million. The government is also providing free tertiary education for persons with disabilities, with 1,530 such students receiving full fee and residential coverage.
The NPP has accused the government of deliberately weakening institutions protecting the rule of law and pursuing selective justice, citing the treatment of convicted MASLOC Chief Executive Sedina Tamakloe and the termination of high-profile corruption prosecutions including UniBank and the Saglemi case.
A Law student reflects on the death of a University of Cape Coast student to examine systemic vulnerabilities facing girls from infancy to adulthood, arguing that society proclaims women as development's backbone while placing obstacles in their path.
The Legal Green Association has endorsed the Interim Transitional Policy Directives under the newly enacted Legal Education Act, 2026, characterizing criticism from the National Alliance of Law Students as misguided. The association argues the directives are necessary administrative measures to facilitate transition from the old legal education system to the new framework, which aims to address longstanding barriers preventing qualified LLB graduates from progressing to professional legal training.
Former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo has resigned from Ghana's Council of State, having submitted her resignation last year and ceased attending meetings since then. Her resignation follows a period in which she became central to a judicial crisis involving then Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, abstaining on a Council vote and later testifying in Torkornoo's defence.
The government has issued interim measures to implement Ghana's new legal education framework under the Legal Education Act 2026, allowing accredited universities to conduct professional legal training alongside the Ghana School of Law. The reforms aim to address a backlog of between 5,000 and 8,000 LLB graduates awaiting admission to professional training.
The government has released GH¢537 million to cover tuition fees for 159,750 students under the No Fees Stress Policy for the 2025/2026 academic year. The Student Loan Trust Fund says the total disbursed under the policy since introduction is GH¢1.3 billion, benefiting around 310,000 students.
A University of Ghana law professor states that former MASLOC Chief Executive Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu has available legal options within Ghana's domestic system despite her extradition from the United States, including potential appeals to challenge her conviction or sentence and questions about the constitutionality of trial in absentia.
A University of Ghana law professor has described the extradition of former MASLOC CEO Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu as demonstrating effective international cooperation between Ghana and the United States in combating corruption and financial crimes, noting that extradition treaties ensure individuals cannot evade justice by fleeing across borders.
Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC) and the Council for Legal Education and Training (CLET) have agreed on a unified accreditation system for Law programmes requiring a single application pathway, joint inspection, and unified evaluation matrix. Under the framework, GTEC will oversee institutional quality assurance while CLET addresses curriculum and professional training standards, with neither body able to grant full accreditation without the other's approval.
Hidden technology setups called SIM boxes are causing Ghana's telecommunications sector to lose roughly GHS 300 million yearly through fraud schemes that intercept international calls and divert revenue.
Tema Oil Refinery Managing Director Edmond Kombat was honoured for exceptional leadership and strategic vision at the 10th Ghana CEOs Summit. The recognition follows TOR's recent receipt of one million barrels of Bonga crude oil and efforts to revitalise refinery operations.
Lawyer Bobby Banson argues that Ghana's 2017–2019 banking sector clean-up, which revoked licences of several banks and savings institutions, could have been managed differently to reduce impact on jobs, businesses, and customers. He suggests authorities had alternative options, such as financial support for struggling institutions, rather than the approach of collapsing banks and pursuing individuals for suspected wrongdoing.
Isaac Nlason won the SRC presidential election at the Ghana School of Law with 1,171 votes (44.97% of valid votes cast) in a five-way race, campaigning on student welfare, academic support, and transparent leadership.
An opinion piece argues that the Legal Education Act, 2026 and its new Council for Legal Education and Training represent the next stage of Ghana's legal independence, following Nkrumah's establishment of the Ghana School of Law to free the nation from dependence on Britain for legal training. The author contends Ghana should lead Africa by building one of the continent's strongest systems of professional legal education.
An opinion piece warns Ghana School of Law students against allowing partisan political parties to infiltrate and influence student union elections, comparing such capture to the biblical story of Esau selling his birthright, and citing the cautionary example of how the National Union of Ghana Students fractured into partisan factions.
Ghana's Legal Education Act 2026 established the Council for Legal Education and Training to regulate legal training standards, decoupling some functions from the General Legal Council. Under Section 45 of the Act, individual law institutions now set their own minimum admission standards through entrance examinations or other assessments, subject to council oversight.
Ghana has enacted the Legal Education Act, 2026 (Act 1170), replacing a framework established in 1960 that no longer suited the expanded legal education landscape. The new act aims to balance access, quality, professional competence, institutional accountability, and national development as law programmes have grown across public and private universities.
President John Mahama has signed the Legal Education Reform Bill (2025) into law, allowing accredited universities to offer professional law programmes and ending the Ghana School of Law's 66-year monopoly over professional legal education. The reform aims to dismantle unnecessary barriers to the legal profession while maintaining rigorous diligence demands on students.
The Legal Green Association has commended President John Mahama for assenting to the Legal Education Bill, 2026, saying the law will expand access to professional legal education and address long-standing barriers created by the Ghana School of Law's monopoly. The association describes the reform as a historic turning point in Ghana's legal education system.
The Legal Education Reform Bill, 2025, signed into law on May 11, will end the Ghana School of Law's monopoly on professional law training by allowing accredited institutions and universities to provide professional legal education. According to Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, the Manyshia South MP, the reforms were achieved through collaboration between both sides of Parliament, with the Minority playing a key role in committee deliberations and floor debates.
President John Dramani Mahama assented to Ghana's Legal Education Bill on May 12, 2026, ending the Ghana School of Law's monopoly. A private legal practitioner praised the President, cabinet, Attorney General Dr Dominic Ayine, Parliament members including Majority Leader Mahama Ayariga and Chief Whip Nelson Etse Dafeamekpor, and advocates such as Prof. Kwaku Asare and Kofi Bentil for championing the reform.
Ghana's newly enacted Legal Education Reform Law, signed by President Mahama, eliminates entrance examinations for law school admission and revokes the Independent Examinations Committee's authority to conduct such exams, according to Majority Chief Whip Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor.