national law universities (NLU)
The cost of a five-year national law university (NLU) course has risen to record levels this year, particularly at the newer NLUs, where the total fees to educate a lawyer come to as much as Rs.2.47 lakh per year, dwarfing the fees charged by the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
The Hindu reported that Tamil Nadu-based National Law School Srirangam vice chancellor N Murugavel has resigned long before the end of his three-year term, despite him having “pooled his professional and administrative experience to build the school from scratch since the day he assumed office. However, he could not get support from some Executive Council members. They could not accept the national recognition received by the Law School within a short span of time.”
The executive council did not cooperate and his contribution was limited, he told the paper.
Tamil Nadu’s national law school became the 15th member of the core Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) member law schools this year after an order from the Madras high court.
Himachal Pradesh will build a National Law University (NLU) in Ghanahatti near Shimla for Rs 400 crore, according to Himachal Pradesh high court chief justice Mansoor Ahmed Mir, reported the PTI.
He said that an ordinance would be passed soon, followed by a bill in the state assembly, which would create the first national law school in the state offering three- and five-year law degree courses, governed by the high court.
NLU Mumbai will start classes this year from its temporary campus in Jogeshwari with an annual budget of around Rs 10 crore, planning to admit 60 students through its independent entrance test.
All Indian national law universities (NLU) except NLU Delhi are now entitled to conduct the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) by rotation every year, according to the terms of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by 16 NLUs on Saturday.
The one-year LLM degree is here to stay, according to a new University Grants Commission (UGC) note published on Tuesday, to clarify its earlier 5 July notification that raised eyebrows.
Question marks surround the 5 July University Grants Commission (UGC) notification that appeared to raise a death knell for the new one-year LLM degree and the five-year integrated LLB degree.
Wadia Ghandy has promoted eight of its lawyers in Mumbai to partnership, including one 2008 NLIU Bhopal graduate and a 2006 NUJS Kolkata graduate.
The Delhi high court has agreed to wait for a three-judge Supreme Court committee’s decision on review of its policy of selection of judicial clerks.
NLU Nagpur almost done: The National Law University Nagpur cleared another hurdle with the Maharashtra government taking the ordinance route to set it up and the cabinet approving the ordinance. Once the draft of the ordinance is sent to the governor for promulgation, the way would be clear to appoint a vice chancellor and other statutory officers for the university [TOI]
Bar council may suspend Delhi law min: The Bar Council of Delhi yesterday issued a notice to Delhi law minister Somnath Bharti asking him to show cause on 7 February, why his name should not be removed from advocate rolls for allegedly tampering with evidence while representing a client before a CBI special court in August [PTI]
ML Sharma vs Kejriwal: The Supreme Court has admitted advocate ML Sharma’s petition against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and law minister Somnath Bharti for “creating chaos in the heart of the capital by going on in an unprecedented 10-day sit-in protest” [India Today]
MHAA strikes some more: The Madras High Court Advocates Association continues working on the demand for recall of the list of judgeship recommendations at the HC, by shunning work yet again – courts were boycotted again today and additionally a “day long hunger strike” from 10am to 4pm was launched. The MHAA also resolved to urge dropping of the ten-year old Supreme Court contempt proceedings against Tamil Nadu Advocates Association president S Prabhakaran [New Indian Express]
Kejri for president’s rule? Former Delhi high court judge RS Sodhi said he sees AAP leader and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s protest as a face-saving tactic to bring about president’s rule and quit from his post as a “gullible martyr” as the party has realised it is beyond its power to govern the city [Telegraph India]
Delhi HC CAG audit order appealed: The Association of Uniform Telecom Service Providers of India has moved the Supreme Court against the Delhi high court verdict allowing the Comptroller and Auditor General the power to audit their accounts [The Hindu Businessline]
The Delhi high court today issued notice in the Supreme Court’s letters patent appeal against the 16 December decision by a single Delhi high court judge that the apex court’s method of selecting judicial clerks was unconstitutional.
Supreme Court judicial clerkships may no longer remain the preserve of national law schools and select universities after the Delhi high court today ruled as unconstitutional the Supreme Court’s current procedure of inviting applications for the clerkships.
SC Singhvi retires, leaves legacy
The Supreme Court’s justice GS Singhvi, most famous for his stern treatment of the 2G and the land acquisition cases, retired today just after overturned the progressive Delhi HC judgment that had decriminalised homosexuality [The Hindu]
Madras HC advocates for Ganguly
Madras HC advocates yesterday took out a rally in support of sexual harassment accused former Supreme Court judge AK Ganguly, asserting that he was being targeted because of his stern dealing of sensational cases [TOI]
CCI’s giant Coal India fine
Coal India is facing Rs 17.7 billion ($290m) Competition Commission of India fine for abusing its dominant position and imposing unfair conditions in fuel supply agreements with customers [Reuters]
E&Y legal to launch Singapore with HSF partner
“Former Herbert Smith Freehills’ Singapore partner John Dick has joined Ernst & Young Singapore as a partner as the “big four” accounting firm mulls legal services launch,” reported [The Lawyer]
PIL reveals crippled IPAB
A PIL in the Madras HC has brought attention to the “crippled” state of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board due to insufficient funds to have permanent premises for its principle and circuit benches [TOI]
Maha-NLS dream remains distant
Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan “dodged” the Times’ query regarding schedule of setting up of Nagpur NLS, even though its proposal was earlier promised to be tabled in the winter session of the state legislative assembly. The paper now writes it could be a distant dream [TOI]
Nagpur wins NLS Maharashtra clearance: The proposal for “Maharashtra National Law University” (as it will be called) to be based in Nagpur was cleared yesterday by the Maharasthra state cabinet. The government has earmarked a reduced capital grant of Rs 125 crore (from Rs 204 crore) for the NLS, which will take in 100 students for its first batch through the CLAT [TOI]
Justice Singhvi excuses self from 2G case, pre-retirement: Justice GS Singhvi, who was leading the bench in the 2G spectrum case, will not hear the case anymore because he has a lot of workload to finish before his retirement on 11 December [TOI]
World anti death penalty day: To mark today's World Day Against Death Penalty NGO Amnesty International yesterday urged India to commute all its death sentences and impose a moratorium on executions [Firstpost]
ML Sharma again Delhi rape lawyer: Serial PIL filer and the former lawyer of one of the Delhi rape convicts, ML Sharma – who had been dumped as counsel to Delhi gang rape convict Mukesh after failing to appear in a fast track court hearing for him – has again filed a Vakalatnama to represent Mukesh after his defence lawyer VK Anand yesterday withdrew from the case [BS/TOI]
Karnataka circuit fiasco: The principle bench at Karnataka HC suffers undue vacancies as judges get deputed to its recently consolidated circuit benches at Gulbarg and Dharwad [Deccan Chronicle]
Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) has entered into associations with NLS, NUJS, Nalsar, NLU Jodhpur and Delhi so far.