The Supreme Court of India will hear in April a PIL by Ashwini Upadhyay seeking a Legal Education Commission to reform legal studies, proposing a four-year LLB after Class 12. A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant considered the plea.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has agreed to consider a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in April that calls for the establishment of a Legal Education Commission aimed at reforming the legal education system. The petition proposes transitioning from a five-year LL.B course after Class 12 to a four-year program.
A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi acknowledged the arguments put forth by advocate and PIL petitioner Ashwini Upadhyay, who requested the formation of a commission composed of distinguished jurists to evaluate and develop the syllabus for legal studies in India.
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In the PIL, filed through lawyer Ashwani Dubey, Upadhyay noted that in several countries, the LL.B course following Class 12 is only four years long and criticized the current five-year program for lacking practical knowledge.
He emphasized that the proposed commission should include prominent jurists and experts capable of reassessing the existing framework of legal education and creating a more effective curriculum. Upadhyay argued that the present five-year integrated law program is not attracting top talent and requires significant structural changes.
The Chief Justice commented,
“Teaching legal education is one issue and the quality of legal education is another issue. But this PIL is good. But the best talent is coming…one reservation can be about practical learning. The pioneer of the 5-year course was not the NSLIU Bangalore but MD University at Rohtak (Haryana),”
Sharing his personal experience, the Chief Justice recalled that the first graduating class from Rohtak was around “1982 or 1983. When I passed out, it was already the third batch or so.”
The Chief Justice concluded,
“But the judiciary is not the only stakeholder. We cannot impose our views. Academicians, jurists, the bar, and social and policy researchers should also participate in this discussion. List this in April 2026,”
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