Challenges and strategies for sustainable clinical legal education in Nigeria

The quest to foster professionalism and improve access to justice for all led to the adoption of clinical legal education (CLE) by law schools across the globe. CLE gives law students opportunities to have real-life work experience, while at the same time rendering free legal services to indigent members of the community. Notwithstanding that CLE is being infused into the curricula of faculties of law of Nigerian universities and the Nigerian Law School (NLS) through the introduction of clinical courses, a number of factors hinder its sustainability. This paper appraises the adoption of CLE in Nigeria as well as its challenges and articulates strategies necessary for its sustenance. It argues that mere curricula modification by the training institutions is not adequate and calls for a holistic review of the legal education policy and structure of legal practice in Nigeria if the country is to tap the benefits of CLE. It emphasises the need for concerted efforts by law faculties to engage and partner with relevant government agencies, community, alumni and the legal profession in sustaining CLE and fostering high standards of training of law students. © 2019, © 2019 The Association of Law Teachers.