LAHORE, June 20: English language as the only medium for law examinations is being introduced almost throughout the province from the next year. Besides, the entry test for admission to the constituent law colleges of the Punjab University, the Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan, and the Islamia University, Bahawalpur, is also being introduced from 2006.

Official sources told Dawn on Monday that the governor had constituted a five-member committee headed by PU Vice-Chancellor Arshad Mahmood to work out these proposals. He had also asked the committee to recommend steps to improve performance of the affiliated law colleges, and hinted at implementing the recommendations after their submission early next month.

The sources said the existing pattern in which one had a choice to take examinations either in English or Urdu was being eliminated to improve the quality of law education.

The committee would also recommend introducing of a four-year LLB (Hons) programme after BA, one year after LLB and five years after FA/FSc, they said.

It would also suggest practical trainings like courts’ visits, law moots, trial advocacy, communication skills, computer skills, opinion writing, judgment writing, office management, negotiation and client dealing in the universities’ constituent and affiliated colleges.

Improvements in physical infrastructure like library, classrooms, offices and sports facilities and a special focus on advance legal studies like PhD, LLM, LLB (Hons), postgraduates’ diplomas, seminars and conferences, and research and publications would also be recommended. It would also propose that the class size must not be more than 50 students especially in the constituent colleges.

Officials claimed that the private law colleges had not been performing up to the mark. They used to hire low-paid faculty, depend on part-time faculty and lack of accountability, they said.

There are 37 affiliated law colleges in Punjab — 21 are affiliated with the Punjab University, 12 with the Bahauddin Zakariya University and four with the Islamia University, Bahawalpur.