A former Director of the Ghana School of Law, Kwaku Ansa-Asare, has issued a blunt warning to aspiring lawyers intending to challenge the legality of the 2026 entrance examinations in court.
His comments come amidst confusion following the signing of the landmark Legal Education Bill into law by President John Dramani Mahama.
The legislation, which seeks to reform the colonial-era structures of legal training in Ghana, has sparked a heated debate between students, the General Legal Council (GLC), and policymakers over whether the controversial entrance exam has been immediately scrapped.
Addressing concerns raised by the Member of Parliament for Old Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, who demanded urgent clarity on the matter, Mr. Ansa-Asare dismissed the idea that students could successfully sue to stop the exams this year.
The seasoned legal luminary challenged anyone considering litigation to identify a constitutional breach that would justify stopping the GLC from conducting the test.
“My suggestion is that law students should be prepared to write the entrance exam. Any law student who goes to court will lose; I can predict that,” Mr. Ansa-Asare stated on Monday, May 11 on Joy FM’s Top Story. “Anyone who goes to court to say that you should not be allowed to write the entrance exam, show me which provision of the Constitution will sustain that kind of action.”
Acknowledging the friction between the new law and existing practices, Mr. Ansa-Asare proposed a midway solution to provide a smooth transition.
He suggested that the entrance exam be held one final time in 2026 to address budgetary commitments before its total abolition in 2027.
“Entrance exam has not been abolished under the existing dispensation. What is confusing about it? So, I think that both are taking entrenched positions, but there’s a solution midway. And the solution is that the entrance exam should be held this year so that, at least, it will take care of the budget deficit for this year. Next year it will be abolished,” he explained.
The new law signed by President Mahama represents a shift in how lawyers are trained in Ghana. Key provisions of the Act include:
- Decentralisation of Professional Training: Breaking the monopoly of the Makola campus by allowing other accredited universities to offer the Professional Law Course.
- Abolition of Entrance Exams: Moving away from the filter system that has seen thousands of qualified LLB holders denied entry into the Ghana School of Law annually.
- Independent Examination Body: Strengthening the oversight of the General Legal Council while separating the teaching from the examining process.
However, Mr. Ansa-Asare reminded stakeholders that every new law has an implementation timeline. He noted that a government white paper would likely be issued soon to address the technicalities and “put all doubt in the passage to sleep”.
For the hundreds of law graduates currently in limbo, the message from the former director is for them to focus on their books rather than the courtroom.
He maintains that until the implementation roadmap is formally activated, the existing dispensation allows the GLC to proceed with its scheduled entrance requirements.
The MP for Tafo, Vincent Ekow Assafuah, has since urged authorities to issue a joint statement to prevent unnecessary anxiety among the student body as the 2026 academic calendar approaches.
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Source: www.myjoyonline.com