Ms. Diana Ahumuza Ateenyi, Lecturer, School of Law (Standing) addresses members of the Katanga Community and students during the engagement on 16th December 2021.
“We are supposed to be moving from the league of asking ourselves what is our ranking in the country, on the continent, in the world to asking ourselves, what is that impact in society which is clearly attributed to Makerere” These were words of Mr. Yusuf Kiranda, University Secretary – Makerere University during a stakeholder engagement event on the 25th November 2021, one of the events that the university will host to mark 100 years of Makerere’s journey.
Relating to the call by the University Secretary, the Makerere University, School of Law (SoL) is providing services responsive to societal needs through Externships. Externships introduced in 2013 by the SoL through the Public Interest Law Clinic (PILAC) are legal aid clinics, in which students are grouped and placed in various learning environments including partner offices or communities to provide legal support and community literacy. The students also get the opportunity to appreciate real life cases and provide legal advice under the supervision of a Lecturer/Advocate. By so doing students see the relevance or even inadequacy of the law alone on solving of client problems.
Public Interest Law Clinic (PILAC) is a premier University Based Law Clinic in Uganda affiliated to Makerere School of Law. It was established in 2012 and is accredited to provide legal aid services by Uganda Law Council. PILAC uses hands-on experiential learning to teach future lawyers attached to Makerere School of Law skills and techniques of solving cases using non-legal and legal solutions with a human rights face-social justice and public interest lawyering.
This year, 30 3rd year students offering Clinical Legal Education (CLE) elective have been placed in four (4) groups in slum communities: Katanga, Kivulu, Kikubamutwe and Kimombasa. These are all communities adjacent to the university and with various legal needs. The externship in Katanga was held on the 16th December, 2021 where the students were accompanied by Ms. Diana Ahumuza Ateenyi, Lecturer at the SoL.
Some of the residents of Katanga that took part in the engagement listen keenly to proceedings.
The SoL team found members of the community already assembled and ready for the engagement. In her opening remarks, Ms. Keloyi Kabahweza, Community Liaison for PILAC in Katanga Slum welcomed the SoL team and thanked PILAC for supporting the community. Ms. Kabahwezi expressed appreciation of the legal aid services offered which the community would not otherwise afford.
Ms. Ahumuza as Team Leader from SoL introduced the members in the Makerere University, SoL team. She thanked the community for the warm welcome extended and time keeping. She further explained that the main issue to be discussed at this meeting was business and the law including saving groups and how to establish them legally. Ms. Ahumuza stressed that while business was the main issue of discussion, other legal questions from the community would be attended to.
Students presented to the community how to establish saving groups/ SACCOS highlighting the legalities entailed. The confidence exhibited by the students was encouraging despite the use of Luganda as the local language for better understanding by the community. The members of the community attending remained attentive throughout the meeting and asked multiple questions. Some of the issues arising during the discussions included: registering SACCOS and the red-tape involved, documentation and record keeping, trust among members, preparing constitutions for SACCOS and money lending.
Other issues discussed included: Wills and succession, Police bond, Money Lenders Act, Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse and domestic violence. The members reiterated their appreciation of the services provided by SoL/PILAC and advised that leaders require special training. It was noted that many times, the leaders abuse the law and take advantage of their vulnerable constituents; they often side with wrong-doers as well as selling community property like land.
One of the students Ms. Tracy Ibondo (standing) interacts with Katanga residents during the engagement.
In her closing remarks, Ms. Diana Ahumuza advised the community that PILAC doors are open to all those persons who require further assistance. She further explained that services are free and everybody is welcome.
It should be noted that:
Practical experiences or stories from the clients in the communities, are a great tool of awakening the law students analytical skills, problem solving skills and appreciation of the applicability of the law.
Students are very committed to these activities and find them very enriching to their legal career
There is dire need for legal aid services in the communities, hence the need for more interventions and strategic partnerships to deepen the intervention.
Services provided by PILAC are affected by the following challenges: limited financial support from the university to implement PILAC activities; the closure of the Democratic Governance Facility (DGF) has affected PILAC’s activities which are donor funded; Covid-19 pandemic remains a big challenge,the team endeavours to adhere to the SOPs when executing community activities; and transportation needs, since the PILAC van is on high demand because of the various demands from activities implemented.
Candidates who scored 50% and above passed the examination and have been recommended to the Admissions Committee for consideration. However, the candidates who passed have to submit an application where Bachelor of Laws is among the programme choices in the application system here: https://apply.mak.ac.ug.
Those who are not satisfied with their results may appeal within two weeks from the date of the release of results.
The list includes the different categories of applicants namely: A-level, Diploma Holders, Degree Holders and Mature-Age:
It is my pleasure to share the School of Law Annual Report for 2024. The report highlights the major activities undertaken and the key outputs realized in light of our core mandate of teaching, research, knowledge transfer and community outreach.
I am happy to report that we successfully implemented all scheduled activities concerning teaching and learning. These included teaching, continuous assessments, final examinations, orientation for new students, field attachment for our LLB III students and graduation among others. At the 74th graduation ceremony held in January 2024, the School of Law presented 285 graduands (1 Doctor of Laws, 20 Master of Laws and 264 Bachelor of Laws). During this ceremony, Hon. Justice Fredrick Egonda Ntende and Hon. Betty Bigombe whom the School of Law had recommended, received their Honorary Doctor of Laws degrees of Makerere University for their distinguished service and contribution to society. The School of Law is very proud of these distinguished citizens. We thank Makerere University Council for having approved their awards.
Our students continued to excel in the different national and international moot court competitions. During the Phillip Jessup International Law Moot Competition held in Washington in April 2024, Makerere University School of Law was recognized as the highest ranked team from Africa. In the area of research, our faculty undertook a number of research projects and published many scholarly articles and research reports on different subjects. I congratulate them for the research outputs realized.
The Judiciary of Uganda and the Parliament of Uganda are some of our key partners and stakeholders. During the reporting period, through our staff and students, the School of Law participated in and contributed to a number of activities organized by these two arms of Government. Key among these included the Africa Judiciaries’ Summit on Alternative Dispute Resolution (5th March 2024), the 7th Annual National Plea Bargaining Conference (21st June 2024), the Alternative Dispute Resolution Week (5th – 9th August), the Family Justice Summit (12th -13th August 2024) and the 7th Chief Justice Benedicto Kiwanuka Memorial Lecture. In May 2024, our students appeared before the Health Committee of Parliament and presented their views on the Human Assisted Reproductive Technology Bill, 2023.
Through mainly our different advocacy and outreach entities including the Public Interest Law Clinic (PILAC), the Refugee Law Project (RLP) and the Human Rights & Peace Centre (HURIPEC) our staff and students conducted and participated in a number of community outreach activities. Key among these included: training of police officers on juvenile justice; training of judicial officers on juvenile justice; providing legal aid services to female prisoners in Luzira Prison; and conducting the Administrative Law short course for public officers in various parts of the country.
In December 2024, the First Lady and Minister for Education and Sports, Hon. Janet Kataaha Museveni officially opened our new School of Law building. The three-storied building has several facilities including staff offices, lecture rooms, seminar rooms, state of art moot court room, a library, a lactation room and a cafeteria. These facilities will greatly enhance the teaching and learning environment at our School, which is key to providing high-quality legal education and training. The building worth 7.3 billion UGX was fully funded by the Government of Uganda.
I thank the Government of Uganda, Makerere University Council, Makerere University Top Administration and all our partners and well-wishers for the continued support that enables us to implement our programme of work. I also thank my fellow leaders and colleagues at the School of Law for the support and participation in the different activities.
As We Build for the Future
Ronald Naluwairo, PhD Associate Professor PRINCIPAL
The Academic Registrar Makerere University announces that the Pre-Entry Examination for admission to the Bachelor of Laws for 2025/2026 will be held on Saturday 12th April, 2025 from 9am – 12pm.
To be eligible to sit the examination, Applicants must possess the minimum admission requirements of the University, and any one of the following specific requirements:
A’ Level leavers: Must hold an ‘O’ Level Certificate (UCE) or its equivalent with at least 5 Passes plus ‘A’ Level Certificate (UACE) or its equivalent having obtained a minimum of 13 points (Males) and 12 points (for Females) in any ‘A’ Level combination for both Humanities and Sciences. Candidates who did ‘A’ Level before 2013 should have 15 and 14 points for male and female applicants respectively.
Diploma Holders: Must possess at least a 2nd Class or Credit Diploma from a recognised institution. Certified Copies of Diploma Transcripts (No Provisional Results) from the Awarding Institutions must be attached to the Application Forms.
Mature Age Applicants: Must have passed the Makerere University Mature Age Entry Examination (for Bachelor of Laws) for February 24, 2024 and December 14, 2024.
Degree Holders: Must be graduates in any Discipline from a Chartered University. Certified Copies of Degree Transcripts (No Provisional Results) from the Awarding Institutions must be attached to the Application Forms. (Degree holders are not eligible for Government sponsorship)
Note:
All applicants wishing to be admitted to the Bachelor of Laws programme offered by Makerere University are required to sit and pass the pre-entry examination of Makerere University.
All applicants interested in Government sponsorship, must have applied for Bachelor of Laws( LAW) by filling in the Government application form. All applicants interested in Private Sponsorship for Bachelor of Laws (LAW) -Day and Afternoon (LLA) will apply afresh when the advert comes out.
All applicants who hold diplomas and degrees must present a certified copy of the academic transcript. Provisional results shall not be accepted to register for this examination.
Applicants should note that admission is based on performance in the pre-entry examination and intake capacities for private day and private afternoon for all categories i.e. ‘A’ level, Diploma Holder, Mature Age, Degree holder and international applicants.
All applicants must attach a PDF Format of scanned copies of their original academic documents, original identification documents (A’ level former school IDs, the rest should have valid IDs s ) and the most recent coloured passport size photograph with a white background as shall be specified on the online application portal.
Each Applicant MUST without fail avail his/her e-mail address and an active mobile phone number that will be used appropriately as may be required to reach out to her/him in case of any communication after submitting the application. Applicants are encouraged to regularly check with the e-mail address/ mobile phone number availed/ application account(portal) for any future communication/information.
All Applicants with visual impairment are advised to come with laptops installed with the computer BRAIL Programme which they will use to write/sit for their pre-entry examination.
Further information detailing how to submit the application are contained in the document below: