Legal Education in Burma since the mid-1960s

Abstract

This article reports on and analyzes developments in Burmese legal education since the mid-1960s. Among others it analyzes the method of admission to various law courses, an overview of and commentary on the course syllabi and the teaching methods and delivery of legal education. The article examines the correspondence courses or distance legal education courses offered since 1975 and the ostensible switch from Burmese to English as a medium of instruction to gauge their effectiveness. The research methodology adopted is based, among others, on the author's own experiences as a law student at Rangoon Arts and Science University. For a more contemporaneous report and analysis, the author also studied the distance education materials prepared for various law courses. He sat in and observed the teaching in both undergraduate (Bachelor of Laws) and post graduate (Master of Laws) classes and conducted interviews with academic staff, undergraduate, and postgraduate students as well recent law graduates and lawyers. The author describes and comments on the course requirements and teaching methods of the postgraduate Master of Laws and Doctor of Philosophy (in law) programs. He also describes and analyzes the format, content, and quality of the seminars for the PhD presentations (regarding the theses), and gives possible suggestions for improvement. From this retrospective of the past four decades of Burmese legal education, the author avers that there are no grounds for optimism as regards future prospects.