Diploma in Legal Practice - Background

BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE OF THE DIPLOMA IN LEGAL PRACTICE

The diploma in Legal Practice (DLP) is a postgraduate professional course meant to equip the trainees with all necessary skills needed to practice law before civil and common law courts, and other legal transactions.  

ILPD is a unique institution in the East African Community (EAC), for its operations within a combination of civil and common law systems. This elevates graduates to a higher level of understanding of these two legal traditions and thus being all around on their EAC market.

The DLP was first approved as a full-time program in 2009. In 2012 a work-based learning mode was approved, with the consent of NHEC, at an internal validation with an external assessor. The part-time mode (evening and weekend programs) and the executive mode followed and started in 2014.

The DLP program is delivered in a module system.  Trainees undergo vigorous 6 months of classroom activities and a three months’ industrial attachment.

At the end of the program students should be able to:

  • understand and undertake the basic activities and routines of Rwandan legal practice as either a lawyer, judge, or prosecutor;
  • understand and practice the basic legal skills of interviewing, advocacy, prosecution, adjudicating, research, drafting, and negotiation;
  • Understand and adhere to the ethics of legal practice.