| After gruelling sessions throughout the day, four teams booked their places in the semi-final round of the Moot Court Competition-2006. These teams, which obtained the highest marks in the preliminary rounds, are the Kerala Law Academy, the National Law Institute University (NLIU), Bhopal, the Department of Law, Panjab University, Chandigarh, and the National Law University, Jodhpur. The final is scheduled for 1.30 pm tomorrow. |
Chandigarh, February 4
Saying that the legal education in the country had undergone a paradigm shift in the past few years, Chief Justice of India Mr Justice Y.K. Sabharwal today advised law students to lay equal emphasis on practical and clinical aspect of legal education.
“Clinical education in the form of moot courts, mock trials and client counseling is a powerful tool in inculcating within you the finer tricks of advocacy. Moot courts serve as a great bridge between law as a science and its practice as an art,” he told students at the inaugural session of the Moot Court Competition-2006 at the Army Institute of Law (AIL), Mohali.
The two-day competition is being organised jointly by the AIL and Malhotra and Malhotra Associates.
Expressing happiness over the fact that admissions to law colleges are no longer treated as the last resort by the students, Mr Justice Sabharwal observed that five-year law course had come to redefine and refine legal education. “Today, the legal profession is amongst the most desirable of the vocations. At the same time, it mustn’t be forgotten that this is just a drop in the ocean and giant leaps have to be made to ensure the best quality of legal practitioners in the country,” he said.
Asking students to understand that with globalisation and advent of free market concept, it is the legal community that would be called upon to play an important role in ensuring that the country does not derail from the constitutional philosophy of equality ad social justice, Mr Justice Sabharwal said that training of students must be directed not only towards equipping them to solve the problems of their clients but also play an active role in society.
He also urged the students as well as the faculty of law colleges to adopt an inter-disciplinary approach to the legal education. “Law is evolving everyday. Economics and law lead to emergence of competition law; growth of information technology has led to cyber laws. As the vistas grow, so would the need for new laws,” he observed.
The CJI however expressed concern over the fact that the Bar was unable to fully reap the fruits of institutes such as the Army Institute of Law, Mohali. “Lured by high remuneration, more and more talent is joining the corporate sector, as result of which, the Bar is losing good lawyers,” he said.
In his address, the Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice, Mr Justice D.K. Jain, pointed out that India had the second largest number of practicing advocates after the USA.
He, however, said the thrust in law colleges and schools was on classroom lecturers, text books and law journals. “There is a huge gap between law in action and law in books. The student of law is neither prepared nor even made to think rationally as an advocate. Resultantly, when he comes half-baked into practice, he finds himself completely at a loss,” Mr Justice Jain said.
Earlier, Dr Anjana Kakar, Principal, AIL, Mohali, welcomed the guests. The closing remarks were made by Mr
J.D.R. Malhotra.
