8-acre land cleared for Guyana’s 1st law school

The clearing of vegetation from the eight-acre plot of land identified for the construction of a Council of Legal Education (CLE)-accredited law school in Guyana has been completed in preparation for construction works. At his September 7 inauguration ceremony following the recent General and Regional Elections, President Dr Irfaan Ali had disclosed that Guyana received approval from the CLE to pursue the highly anticipated project, and noted that work will commence immediately. Two weeks later, Attorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, SC, accompanied by Vice-Chancellor of the University of Guyana (UG) Professor Paloma Mohamed, Christopher Ram and other UG officials, visited the site earmarked within the university’s Turkeyen Campus for the country’s first law school building. The clearing of the lands, which were heavily vegetated, commenced shortly after and has since been completed. On Sunday morning, AG Nandlall conducted a site visit to inspect the preparatory works done at the location that will house the main building and other facilities relating to the Caribbean’s newest addition to its current complement of law schools.

“The land itself is eight acres…it was heavily overgrown with vegetation, bushes – a jungle basically, and we commissioned the clearing of the land and the land is now cleared,” he stated during the visit. Located at the southwestern section within the university’s compound, a road had to also be built to access the site. “There’s a road that we had to clear to come into [site location] because UG has reserved the front part of the lands for other purposes. So, we are at the back [and] we had to clear a road to access the back,” AG Nandlall stated, adding that “…we will start construction very shortly.” The AG had previously told the Guyana Times that funding for the law school will be included in the next budgetary cycle, and thereafter, the procurement process to select a contractor will commence.
Meanwhile, the plan and architectural design of the new law school are already drawn up and were part of the proposal that was presented to the West Indies’ CLE and approved.

Plans for local law school
Over the last two years, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration has been working to get permission from the CLE to establish a much-needed law school here. The CLE is a regional organisation which operates the Hugh Wooding Law School in the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago, the Norman Manley Law School in Jamaica, and the Eugene Dupuch Law School in the Bahamas. Guyana had previously conducted a feasibility study for the establishment of a local law school, and the findings were handed over to the CLE last September. Additionally, a high-level subcommittee, which included AG Nandlall and other prominent officials across the Caribbean region, was appointed to review Guyana’s application.
For nearly three decades, Guyana has been trying to establish a law school within its jurisdiction since Guyanese law students are forced to attend the Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad. However, only the 25 top law students from Guyana are allowed each year into the programme. UG’s Law Degree programme usually has about 40 students per year. Moreover, the high cost of living in Trinidad has deterred many persons from further pursuing a legal career, but in response, the Guyana Government now offers limited fully funded scholarships to Hugh Wooding Law School. The journey to getting a local law school set up here started some three years ago when Guyana’s proposal to set up its own law school was accepted by the CLE in September 2022. The CLE subsequently outlined the requirements that the country needed to fulfil, including the conduct of a comprehensive feasibility study in which Guyana has to illustrate the number of students the school will attract and accommodate as well as the Government’s capacity to fund the construction of the facility and its initial operation cost.
Under the previous A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Coalition Administration, attempts were made to establish the Joseph Oscar Fitzclarence Haynes Law School. However, the CLE was not approached about the project initially, and when permission was eventually sought, it was denied in late 2017. But the PPP/C Government, from the inception, had declared that any law school that is established in Guyana will be done under the ambit of the CLE – something that will also allow the country to capitalise on the overcrowding at the other institutions across the region. In fact, Nandlall, speaking during his Issues in the News programme last Tuesday, contended that, “…It’s a regional institution. But of course, we take great pride in having that type of institution within our country, and obviously this will bring investments to Guyana. It will bring people from all over the world. It will enhance our reputation and resume as an education destination, and you have heard our Government articulate its vision in this regard. So, the law school project will proceed with every convenient speed and hopefully in the shortest possible time, we will be able to open the doors of the law school.”