Let's Get Talking!

UNIVERSITIES MUST IMPART PRACTICAL EMPIRICAL EDUCATION IN LAW COURSES Aviva Jogani, 3 rd Year, BA.LLB (Hons.), Jindal Global Law School Editorial Note: In this blog, the author emphasizes the need for incorporating elements of empirical and practical education within the law school curriculum in order to truly train law students for success in their legal careers. Duncan Kennedy, a professor at Harvard Law School, wrote an article titled “Legal Education and Reproduction of Hierarchy” in 1982, in which he referred to law school as a political place for those who are willing to function in a hierarchy of a corporate welfare state. 1 In his article, Kennedy states that the language of the coded law and the manner in which legal reasoning is taught by professors in law school are incomprehensible for students, just as they are for any layman. The authoritarian nature of teachers coupled with their biased views is what guides Kennedy to describe law school as an “ intensely

ANKITA MEENA V. UNIVERSITY OF DELHI: ARE LEGAL STRINGENCIES JUSTIFIED IN CASE OF WELFARE LEGISLATION? Pragya Jain, 2nd Year, Gujarat National Law University Editorial Note: In this blog post, the author considers the fallacies of the decisions of the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court in Ankita Meena v University of Delhi, viewing the issues which arise from the perspective of their potential impact on society. The very essence of a professional course such as law is denuded when it lets stringency and inflexibility shroud the path of advancement for a female student. This is especially true in India, where women’s education remains a cause of much concern and serious deliberation. In India, the issue does not end with awareness campaigns in rural areas, as it fails to soak into the social fabric of urban families desperate to ensure that their daughters are marriageable, with their being obedient creatures being valued over the prioritization of their   goals. In a di

NO MERCY IN PROFESSIONAL C OURSES FOR PREGNANCY? Gauranshi, 4 th Year, BA.LLB (Hons.), Amity Law School Editorial Note: In this blog post, the author discusses the problem with the stance taken by the Supreme Court in the case of Ankita Meena v University of Delhi and emphasizes the need for the Bar Council of India to develop rules to address the issues faced by pregnant women seeking to complete their professional legal education. A woman, while being tied up in her matrimonial life, is expected to take care of her family and her beloved ones. In Indian society, females are frequently expected to spend their lives in fulfilling different roles as a mother, a wife and a daughter which require them to put others before them. It is rather unfortunate however, that our society appears to be reluctant in reciprocating for the care that it expects. This is because when a woman dares to step out of their designated societal roles and attempt to live a dignified life on her own t

THE INJUSTICE OF CLAT Tanya Saxena, 2nd Year, NLIU Bhopal Editorial Note: In this blog post, the author highlights the deficiencies which have been witnessed in the conduct of the Common Law Admission Test in the past few editions and provides suggestions about how the situation may be remedied. The Common Law Admission Test, popularly known as CLAT, is one of the most prestigious exams conducted in the country for pursuing higher studies in the field of law. The results of this 120 minute examination determine the future of thousands of students, aspiring to become lawyers, across the country. Due to the immense value these results hold, several students who are unable to crack it in the first attempt, end up attempting it multiple times in the hope of securing a seat in a prestigious National Law University. It is undeniable that in India, marks hold a lot of importance in a young student’s life. They are often a matter of parental pride or disappointment, as the case

A GAME OF CHINESE WHISPERS Nikhil Reddy Kothakota, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad, 2nd year , BA LLB Editorial Note: In this blog post, the author expresses an opinion about why it is important to introduce law students to the concept of objectivity. Once when I was 12 and the class was playing the game of Chinese whispers, the intended “Grandma fed her cats” through the succession of ears and whispers down the line became “Grandma baked her cats” and that is the effect of information passing down, diluted and mutated in form. Having said that... Welcome to your law school, here your teeth grind against each other and your ears are sharp in anticipation, with your eyes looking out. Here, the entire world looks like an arena or a battlefield and the romanticism of every TV show with young lawyers and attorneys will soon be lost on you. You will smile with a certain nostalgia when you look at young hopeful students who rush into morning classes like there’s no tomorrow.