Attitude of Students to Clinical Legal Education: A Case Study of Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan

Abstract

The students of the Faculty of Law, University of Ibadan were introduced to the clinical way of legal education in the year 2008. This is a new teaching method different from the traditional method of teaching law. A specialized Women’s Law Clinic was also inaugurated to complement the clinical work in the faculty. This article reflects on the attitude of the students to this development, using the results of an unstructured interview of some third- and fifth-year law students, some law graduates and some non-law students and graduates who were exposed to the clinical legal education (CLE) method of instruction. The article discusses the new teaching method and the effects on legal and advocacy skills, teamwork and students’ interest in the teaching of law courses. Results show that the attitude of students particularly is very positive towards CLE and it is preferred to the traditional method of teaching.