The Question is, WHEN DOES A LAW DEGREE BECOME STALE?
Submitted by Anonymous on Wed, 12/30/2009 - 00:33
Gentlemen and ladies, You who are learned in Public Life and have carried out researches, have gone to Universities in the Caribbean, the Americas, Europe, and other parts of the World, When, and Why should a Degree .BECOME STALE? . Should a degree become stale, and, for what reasons?
If I obtained a Degree in the Humanities 7 years ago and i am presently employed in another line of work, does this means all my learning is obsolete?
My humble opinion is this: For many persons, a degree marks a significant milestone in their lives. They may not practise or wish to practise the particulal subjects such as law or, Economics or any of the social siences or other subjects, if you do not use it for seven years, does this means that you are no longer qualified in that particular discipline? Well there is an ammendment to the Legal Practitioners Law, which provides that a law degree for the purposes of obtaining a Legal practioner's licence (the Bar Course plus tutledge)in the Cayman Islands is stale after seven years. If this does not apply to other subjects why, should it singles out a law degree. Tell me, is this so in other subject areas? Is this so in other countries?
If you care to share some of your vast knowledge of the world I will humbly absorb some of you information. I await any comments.
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Comments
Perhaps a compromise is ideal
It's a good question, and I can see two sides of the argument -- on one hand there is a lot of knowledge in any legal education and even after seven years it will still be of some use. On the other hand, a lot changes in leglislation during this amount of years. Perhaps a compromise is ideal whereby legal practicioners are required to undertake re-examination every 5 years or so to ensure they still can offer relevant services that and thereby protect their clients?
Making a difference in the established legislation will always be difficult without young blood entering the industry to challenge attitudes no longer deemed relevant to society. It's vital that universities provide opportunities for a graduate diploma in law ( such as can be found at http://kaplan-law-school.kaplan.co.uk/GDL/Pages/default.aspx ) to allow new barristers, solicitors and other legal professionals a chance to make a difference.
My dear this is like
My dear this is like everything else.
ANYTHING TO PUT A STUMBLING BLOCK IN FRONT OF OUR CAYMANIAN PEOPLE!
If a false sense of
If a false sense of persecution was an Olympic sport posters like this would bring home medals to Cayman.
Anyone heard of CPD's?
Indirectly addressing the question from a European perspective:
All solicitors and registered European lawyers (RELs) who
are required by the Training Regulations 1990 to undertake continuing professional development (CPD) activities.
The SRA's CPD scheme is compulsory.
Non-compliance could lead to disciplinary procedures and/or to delays in the issue of a practising certificate.
Therefore I would suggest that provided they are in practice and meet their CPD requirements, their degrees never do become stale.
Aside from this, there's not many lawyers would agree with you if you were to say that the training you received at college/uni to obtain your degree was actually that relevant in practice. If you are on the job and good at your job, you will continually keep abreast of developments relevant to your particular area of law, and therefore your knowledge (if you are a good lawyer) should never go stale.
When it starts to grow some
When it starts to grow some greenish mold I would throw it away.
I think you're more
I think you're more qualified than someone who never took courses in law, however, the level to which you have kept up with the law of the land you are residing in should be a determining factor assessed at certain intervals.
I obtained my law degree 5
I obtained my law degree 5 years ago. I honestly wasnt aware about the stale law degree provision, or I might have bucked up sooner! Anyways, I know first hand that certain areas of law change very quickly such as European Union law and certain aspects of Trust Law. Statutes and cases I learned 5 years ago in certain areas are no longer referred to a "case on point" because new legislation and cases have emerged.
That said, when you practice law it becomes less about knowing or memorising and more about problem solving and knowing where to go to find the answers so I am disheartened by the stale degree legislation.
There are things I learned 5 years ago that I will always know and always need to know but I understand the need to stay 'current'. Sorry I can't definitively answer your question, methinks the law shall NOT be repealed/abolished so you may have to learn to lump it. Sorry
Sir/Madam Anon: I am no lady,
Sir/Madam Anon:
I am no lady, nor learned in Public Life; have not carried out any researches, neither have I gone to any university in the Caribbean, the Americas, or Europe. But I did go to a university in Asia and it ranked 298th in the world.
If I may, I would like to answer your question and hopefully, in my humble opinion, may contribute a minimal glimmer of light.
I would say that a degree in whatever does not necessarily become stale, only passe or outdated as the first replier stated.
What I have learned 7, 14, 21 years ago cannot be obsolete, but they can be updated. As the world turns, information changes. Still, the basics remains fundamentally the same.
The Mechanics/Technicians seven years ago may be out of their depth looking at today's electronic/electrical cars if they have not kept with the times.
With technology advancing in leaps and bounds, the doctors and nurses have to keep pace with it for a better and more accurate diagnoses.
With due respect, I would also like to say that even religion should keep up with science.
One should not blindly follow tradition if it doesn't make sense, don't you think so, too?
I do not have vast knowledge of the world because I cannot afford it, but what I have, I gladly share.
Peace.
My apologies. I got outdated
My apologies. I got outdated myself. It's been ages since I have last seen the four walls of a classroom.
The 298th world ranking is no longer accurate. My mistake.
Presumably because the law is
Presumably because the law is always changing and after 7 years some of your education will be around 10 years out of date?
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