ZAMBIA INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED LEGAL EDUCATION ACT: SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION (CHAPTER 49)

"accreditation" means the process of evaluation and certification of the competence of a legal education institution to ensure that it meets the training standards determined by the Accreditation Committee;

"Accreditation Committee" has the meaning assigned to it in the Act;

"Council" has the meaning assigned to it in the Act;

"Institute" means the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education;

"legal education or training" means an education or training programme whose objective is to impart knowledge or skills in the area of law;

"legal education institution" means an institution that offers legal education or training;

"practitioner" has the meaning assigned to it in the Legal Practitioners Act; and

"Secretary" means the Secretary to the Council of the Institute.

3. Application

These Regulations apply to an institution that is authorised under the Act or any other written law to offer legal education or training.

PART II
ACCREDITATION OF LEGAL EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

4. Establishment of sub-committees

The Accreditation Committee may establish such sub-committees or appoint such experts as it considers necessary for undertaking any of its functions under these Regulations.

5. Application for accreditation

(1) A legal education institution shall apply for accreditation in Form I set out in the First Schedule.

(2) The Accreditation Committee may request for further information from an applicant, where the information provided by an applicant is not sufficient.

(3) The Accreditation Committee shall reject an application for accreditation if the applicant fails to comply with the requirements set out in these Regulations.

(4) The Accreditation Committee shall, where it rejects an application for accreditation, inform the applicant of its decision within seven days of the decision in Form II set out in the First Schedule.

6. Evaluation of programme

(1) The Accreditation Committee shall, within 60 days from the date of receipt of an application for accreditation, evaluate the programme submitted with the application.

(2) The Accreditation Committee may—

(a) engage the services of an independent evaluator to undertake the evaluation process on its behalf; or

(b) evaluate the programme of a legal education institution under any other written law for the purposes of the accreditation process.

(3) A member of the Council or Accreditation Committee who is a dean of a legal education institution, a member of staff of a faculty of a legal education institution or is otherwise connected to or interested in the affairs of the legal education institution that is the subject of an application for accreditation, shall not participate in the evaluation of the application for accreditation relating to that legal education institution.

7. Re-evaluation of rejected application

An applicant whose application for accreditation is rejected under regulation 5 may, within 90 days of the rejection, resubmit the application for reevaluation by the Accreditation Committee.

8. Certificate of accreditation

(1) The Accreditation Committee shall, within 60 days of receipt of an application for accreditation, approve the application if the applicant meets the requirements of these Regulations and award a certificate of accreditation to the legal education institution in Form III set out in the First Schedule.

(2) The certificate of accreditation issued under sub-regulation (1) shall, unless revoked, be valid for a period of five years.

9. Operation standards

An accredited legal education institution shall maintain and operate in accordance with, the operation standards set out in the Second Schedule.

10. Review and alteration of accredited programme

(1) A legal education institution shall not alter an accredited programme without the prior approval of the Accreditation Committee.

(2) An application to alter an accredited programme shall be in Form IV set out in the First Schedule.

(3) The Accreditation Committee shall, within 30 days of receipt of the application to alter an accredited programme, approve the application if the proposed alteration meets the requirements of these Regulations and notify the legal education institution in writing.

11. Institutional reports

(1) An accredited legal education institution shall prepare and submit to the Accreditation Committee—

(a) at the end of each year, an annual report of its activities in each year of operation, which shall include the resources set aside for the legal training and the maintenance of the legal library services; and

(b) after every five years, a detailed report for the degree programme and after every four years for other training programmes, indicating the progress made on the maintenance of standards and institution's objects with regard to legal education.

(2) The Accreditation Committee shall evaluate the reports received under sub-regulation (1) and make such recommendations as are necessary for the improvement of the training programmes and standards of the legal education institution.

12. Suspension and revocation of accreditation

(1) The Accreditation Committee shall, where an accredited legal education institution fails to comply with the standards set out in the Fourth Schedule, issue a notice of intention to revoke its accreditation in Form V set out in the First Schedule.

(2) A notice issued under sub-regulation (1) shall specify the details of the failure to comply with the standards.

(3) A legal education institution shall, within 30 days of receipt of a notice of intention to revoke accreditation, remedy the failure specified in the notice and make representations in writing, to the Accreditation Committee stating why the accreditation should not be revoked.

(4) Where the legal education institution fails to remedy the default, the Accreditation Committee may, revoke the accreditation issued to the institution and notify the legal education institution in Form VI set out in the First Schedule.

(5) The Accreditation Committee shall, where it revokes the accreditation of a legal education institution, publish a notice of revocation in a daily newspaper of general circulation in Zambia and the Institute's website.

(6) The Accreditation Committee shall cancel the notice of intention to revoke accreditation of a legal education institution if it is satisfied that the legal education institution has put in place necessary measures to comply with these Regulations.

(7) A legal education institution which is subject to a notice under this regulation shall meet the Accreditation Committees administrative costs and other expenses incurred in the enforcement of this regulation.

13. Renewal of accreditation

(1) A legal education institution may apply for the renewal of accreditation to the Accreditation Committee in Form I set out in the First Schedule.

(2) The Accreditation Committee shall, where a legal education institution complies with these Regulations and maintains the prescribed standards renew its accreditation for a further period of five years.

14. Order of discontinuation of provision of legal education institution

(1) The Accreditation Committee shall order a legal education institution to discontinue providing legal education or training if—

(a) the legal education institution requests to discontinue the accredited programme;

(b) the Accreditation Committee determines that the legal education institution is no longer competent to offer the legal education or training;

(d) the legal education institution is not accredited by the Council.

(2) An order of discontinuation to a legal education institution shall be in Form VII set out in the First Schedule.

(3) The Council shall publish the order of discontinuation issued under sub-regulation (2) in a daily newspaper of general circulation in Zambia.

(4) The Council may by a notice in the Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation stop the legal education or training programme for a legal education institution that has not complied with this regulation.

15. Discontinuation plan

(1) A legal education institution shall, within 60 days of receipt of an order of discontinuation issued by the Council under regulation 14, submit a discontinuation plan to the Council for approval.

(2) A discontinuation plan submitted under sub-regulation (1) shall—

(a) state the date on which the legal education institution shall discontinue providing legal education or training; and

(b) become effective at the end of the academic year in which the order is issued.

(3) Once a discontinuation plan submitted under sub-regulation (1) as approved by Council, a legal education institution shall—

(a) not admit new students to any of its legal programmes; and

(b) assist its students to transfer to other accredited institutions to complete their legal education programmes.

(4) A legal education institution shall, until it discontinues a programme—

(a) pursue the course programmes approved by the accreditation committee in the mode existing before the order of discontinuation;

(b) maintain the library and other physical facilities required under these Regulations; and

16. Inspection

(1) The Accreditation Committee may on its own motion or on the request of the legal education institution or the public, inspect a legal education institution accredited under these Regulations.

(2) The Accreditation Committee shall prepare an inspection report stating its findings and recommendations and submit the report to the institution.

(3) The Accreditation Committee shall, where it determines that a legal education institution has failed to maintain the standards set out under these Regulations, revoke the accreditation.

(4) Where a legal education institution requests the Accreditation Committee to inspect the institution, the institution shall meet the Accreditation Committee's reasonable administrative costs and other expenses incurred in connection with the inspection.

17. Register

(1) The Secretary shall keep and maintain a register of the accredited legal education institutions in which the Secretary shall enter the details and particulars relating to—

(a) the accredited legal education institutions;

(b) the applications rejected and the reasons therefor; and

(2) The register of legal education institutions shall be kept at the offices of the Institute, and shall be open for inspection by members of the public during normal office hours upon payment of the fee set out in the Forth Schedule.

(3) The Secretary may, upon application by any person, issue to the person a certified extract from the register or a copy of any accreditation, upon payment of the fee set out in the Fourth Schedule.

18. Publication of accredited legal education institutions

(1) The Accreditation Committee shall, at the beginning of each year, publish a list of all the accredited legal education institutions in a newspaper of general circulation in Zambia and the Institute's website.

(2) The Accreditation Committee shall maintain and regularly update particulars of the accredited institutions on its register and the institute's website.

PART III
LEGAL EDUCATION TRAINING

19. Eligibility for admission to legal education programme

(1) A student shall be eligible for admission to a legal education training programme if that student attains the required minimum qualifications set out in the Third Schedule.

(2) A student shall be disqualified from being enrolled as an undergraduate law student if the student does not possess the qualifications set out under sub-regulation (1).

20. Recognition of academic awards

(1) The Accreditation Committee may recognise academic awards in legal education of foreign institutions that are recognised by the Council or any other competent authority under any other written law.

(2) Notwithstanding the generality of sub-regulation (1), the Accreditation Committee shall equate every qualification from a foreign institution against its standards and make such recommendations as it considers necessary for the better carrying out of these Regulations.

PART IV
GENERAL PROVISIONS

21. Appeal

(1) A person aggrieved by a decision of the Accreditation Committee may appeal, in writing, to the Council through the Secretary within 30 days from the date of receipt of the Accreditation Committee's decision.

(2) An application made under sub-regulation (1) shall set out the grievance or issues to be determined by the Council.

(3) The Council shall, within 14 days of receipt of an appeal, determine the appeal.

(4) A person aggrieved by a decision of the Council may appeal to the High Court.

22. Fees

The fees specified in the Fourth Schedule shall be paid in respect of the matters specified in that Schedule.

23. General offence and penalty

A person who contravenes these Regulations commits an offence and is liable, upon conviction, to a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred penalty units or imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years, or to both.

24. Transitional provisions

(1) An institution that offers legal education or training shall, within six months after the commencement of these Regulations, apply to the Accreditation Committee for accreditation.

(2) Where an application for accreditation to the Accreditation Committee is in respect of any programme that existed before the commencement of these Regulations, the Accreditation Committee may permit the legal education institution to continue operating for a period not exceeding one year pending the accreditation of the legal education institution.

FIRST SCHEDULE

[Regulations 5, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 19, and 23]

Form I

[Regulations 5(1) and 13]

Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education

The Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education Act

(Laws, Volume 4, Cap. 49)

The Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education
(Accreditation of Legal Education Institutions) Regulations, 2014

APPLICATION FOR ACCREDITATION/RENEWAL OF ACCREDITATION

Shaded fields for official use only

Certificate code

Tick where applicable (")

Date

Information Required

Information Provided

Accreditation no.

Name of the Institution

Physical address (location):

Contacts:

Physical address:

Tel:

Fax:

Email:

Others:

Programme level-(degree, diploma, etc.)

Curriculum and course units taught:

Minimum admission requirements:

Teaching methodologies:

Examination and pass mark:

Academic award (LLB, Diploma in Laws etc):

10.

Details of staff employed for the programme (including qualification*, work load, part time and full time):

11.

Number of students per year of study:

12.

Physical facilities (building, land, owned or leased):

13.

Library (space dedicated for the programme and legal volumes):

14.

Other facilities:

15.

Budget set out for the development of legal education including purchase of books and research:

* The information required to be included in the various appendices
* Certified copies of certificates of academic qualifications of academic staff must be attached.
DECLARATION
I/we declare that the information given in this applicant is correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
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