CJI HL Dattu inaugurates Seminar on ‘Global Legal Education’ at KIIT

The All India Seminar on ‘Global Legal Education’, organized by Confederation of Indian Bar in association with KIIT University, was inaugurated by Hon’ble Shri Justice H. L. Dattu in the presence of Shri Naveen Patnaik, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha, Hon’ble Shri Justice Dipak Misra, Judge, Supreme Court of India and a host of legal luminaries at KIIT University, Bhubaneswar on August 8, 2015.

Shri Pranab Mukherjee, His Excellency the President of India was slated to inaugurate the seminar, but he could not make it due to unavoidable circumstances. His address, however, was delivered through and read out to the august gathering by the Chief Justice of India.

Law is the very foundation of a democratic society and legal education is of great significance in furthering the idea of a civilized nation-state rooted in the Rule of Law, the President of India observed.“The skill sets that the legal profession and the lawyers require in today’s time are very different from those earlier. Our future lawyers must now be equipped with the necessary knowledge and skill to think and act globally”, he noted. The concept of global legal education goes beyond international legal themes, Shri Mukherjee stressed, while asking law schools to focus on research.

“In the times we live, society continues to grow more and more complex. Changes in legal system reflect these changes”, the Chief Justice of India said in his inaugural address. India must produce world-class professionals and academicians to compete globally, he stated, while highlighting the need to have an international perspective in legal education. Exchange programme, low student-teacher ratio, partnerships with foreign universities and legal clinics are some of the methods which contribute to globalizing legal education, Shri Dattu elaborated. He congratulated Confederation of Indian Bar and KIIT University for organizing the seminar to discuss this very important issue.

Extending a warm welcome to the legal luminaries in Odisha, Shri Naveen Patnaik said that impact of globalization has necessitated changes in the existing laws. Globalization has posed challenges as well as created opportunities in the legal education in India, he added. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Justice Dipak Misra stated that such academic events are very beneficial for the law makers. As the world is becoming a ‘global village’, there is a need for a global legal education system, he said.

Shri Pravin H. Parekh, President, Confederation of Indian Bar delivered the opening address, while Prof. N. L. Mitra, Chancellor, KIIT University made the closing remarks. Shri S. P. Mishra, Advocate General, Odisha and Shri Rabindra Shrivastava, Vice President, Confederation of Indian Bar were also present on the occasion. The inaugural session was followed by plenary session chaired by senior Supreme Court of India Judge, Hon’ble Mr. Justice A. R. Dave.

Legal luminaries, academicians and practitioners from all over the country will continue deliberation on different aspects of the topic in 12 working sessions and valedictory session tomorrow. Each working session will be chaired by a judge of Supreme Court of India and co-chaired by Chief Justice or a senior judge of a High Court. Judges of the Supreme Court of India, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Madan B. Lokur, Hon’ble Mr. Justice M.Y. Eqbal, Hon’ble Mr. Justice V. Gopalagowda, Hon’ble Mr. Justice N.V. Ramana, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arjan Kumar Sikri, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Shiva Kirti Singh and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arun Mishra will chair 12 working sessions. Similarly, Hon’ble Chief Justices of High Courts of Chhattisgarh, Manipur, Sikkim, Madras, Jharkhand, Punjab & Haryana, Telangana & Andhra Pradesh and Gauhati will co-chair these sessions.

Hon’ble Shri Justice T.S. Thakur, the seniormost judge of the Supreme Court of India will preside over the valedictory session on August 9 in the presence of Hon’ble Shri Justice D. H. Waghela, Chief Justice, High Court of Orissa and Mr. D. V. Sadananda Gowda, Hon’ble Union Minister of Law & Justice, who will deliver the valedictory address.

More than 1100 advocate-delegates from all parts of the country, including 700 from Odisha, are participating in this mega law meet. An important objective of the Seminar is to provide a unique opportunity to the students of law as well as new entrants to the profession of direct interaction with national and international level legal luminaries, including judges of the Supreme Court of India and High Courts.