Abstract
The practice of law is a fledging field in the Maldives. The demand for trained law professionals has never been so high. This major shift in career choices can be attributed to the fast developing legal and political institutions in the Maldives and an ongoing goal of integrating democracy into a fundamentally Islamic system. These issues are particularly critical and complex for the Maldives justice system because it is a mixture of Shari’ah and multiple other principles and legal concepts, including English common law. The present system of legal education, however, which offers limited opportunities for applying law school theory to real-life cases, is hugely deficient in terms of preparing students for a legal career in the Maldives or elsewhere. This chapter examines many of these contemporary disparities between legal education and law practice in the Maldives. It explores the effect of introducing clinical legal education (CLE) into law schools by exploring the potential impact on the quality of the graduates and also on legal aid, human rights, and access to justice for vulnerable groups. It is hoped that this appraisal will spotlight some of the most important questions and problems faced by those engaged in legal education, law reform, and the administration of justice in the Maldives.
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Notes
Husnu Al Suood, The Maldivian Legal System (Maldives Law Institute, 2014) 185–193.
H. C. P. Bell, The Máldive Islands: Monograph on the History, Archaeology, and Epigraphy (Ceylon Government Press, 1940) 116.
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© 2015 Shuvro Prosun Sarker
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Jabyn, M., Sterling, R. (2015). Better Lawyers, Better Justice: Introducing Clinical Legal Education in the Maldives. In: Sarker, S.P. (eds) Clinical Legal Education in Asia. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137517531_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137517531_2
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, New York
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