The reality of being a law graduate in Bangladesh

There is a general belief that law and medicine are typically pursued by the most meritorious students. Although a law graduate has lots of different career options to choose from apart from being a lawyer, the reality often can be wildly different in Bangladesh.

While medicine retains its spot as a discipline studied by the best of the best, most people undermine law as a discipline. This is probably best exemplified by a saying in Bangla: "Jar nai kono goti, shei kore okaloti", meaning those who cannot do anything else, pursue law. 

Regardless, the number of students interested in the legal profession is soaring. But graduates have to encounter a lot of challenges when entering the legal profession. 

Firstly, law graduates, both within Bangladesh and abroad, are not permitted to practice in courts despite having a degree. They need to be authorised to practice after passing the bar council exam; until then, law graduates can only work as apprentice lawyers.

Challenges faced by a law graduate

The majority of an apprentice lawyer's life in Bangladesh is miserable. They have to work and learn in a system that is ineffective and indifferent to the suffering of the apprentice lawyers. 

On top of that, senior advocates often do not welcome apprentices warmly, unless they are fortunate enough to have a close member of the family who is also a lawyer. 

To make matters worse, apprentice lawyers receive minimum remuneration despite putting much effort into their work.  The amount of time and effort needed to execute a task cannot be justified by the compensation they receive. 

Consequently, families of apprentice lawyers often do not support their work. In addition, families of female law students discourage and prevent them from becoming lawyers due to a lack of safety. 

Because of this, apprentice lawyers and enrolled lawyers favour working for a reputable law firm over an independent practice.

With more people graduating with law degrees and new law colleges emerging at an even higher rate, the job market is becoming increasingly competitive. 

It also takes time to recruit new apprentice lawyers as it can take time to decide whether someone can handle the constant demands on their performance. Then there is the issue of remuneration which is barely enough to support oneself, let alone their family. 

To overcome these issues, the legal education of Bangladesh needs a comprehensive and well-considered change. 

Taking lessons from other countries

Bangladesh can adopt the one-year post-graduate legal training courses used in England. The bar course must be completed to be called a barrister at one of the four Inns of Court in England and Wales. The person must complete a pupillage after being admitted to the bar. The post-graduate vocational degree is known as the legal practice course for solicitors. 

In New Zealand, Law graduates must finish the Professional Legal Studies Course to practice as a barrister or solicitor.

In Asia, to practice law in a court in Hong Kong, a law graduate must only acquire a post-graduate certificate in law. Malaysia offers a nine-month vocational programme that leads to a Certificate in Legal Practice that enables law graduates to work as advocates elsewhere in the Commonwealth of Nations.

These graduate-level vocational courses are taught in academic institutions. On the other hand, to take the single bar council exam, law graduates in Bangladesh have to rely on question papers and private coaching.

Unless we are able to address the aforementioned challenges and adopt meaningful reform to aid the law graduates of the country, the situation is not likely to improve.