By Members of Parliament on the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee have proposed that the study of Law in Uganda be limited to graduates only, arguing that restricting the discipline to a second degree could help improve the quality of lawyers produced by local universities.
The proposal was fronted during a committee session held with officials from the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs to consider the entity’s 2025/26 ministerial policy statement.
Bugweri County MP Abdu Katuntu and Soroti District Woman Representative Anna Adeke expressed concern over the growing number of universities offering Law and the apparent decline in the quality of legal education and practice. Katuntu argued that many of the young lawyers being churned out today lack the depth and interdisciplinary grounding required for complex legal work.
“Any lawyer will tell you that we have a challenge with the quality of legal training. There are so many law schools now producing hundreds of graduates, but something is missing,” Katuntu said. “Isn’t it time we considered offering Law as a second degree? Someone who already qualifies—say in Commerce—would make a better investment advisor if they also trained in Law, rather than someone who joined Law School straight from Senior Six.”
He cited international practices where professionals pursue Law after obtaining degrees in other fields such as medicine, architecture, and engineering, enabling them to handle specialized legal disputes more effectively.
“Imagine Sheraton collapsing today wouldn’t an architect who is also a lawyer be in a better position to handle such a case than a general-purpose lawyer?” he asked.
Hon. Adeke added to the concerns, focusing on the growing pressure at the Law Development Centre (LDC), Uganda’s sole institution for the Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice.
“Every year, the number of law graduates increases. Next academic year, we could see 4,000 to 5,000 applicants. How are you as a regulator managing this influx?” she questioned.
Adeke warned that despite decentralization efforts and increased intake, LDC remains overwhelmed and may not cope with the current volume of graduates, potentially affecting the quality of legal practitioners entering the profession.
