THE first private University in Delta State, Novena University, Ogume, has commenced LL.B Degree programme.
Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Godwin Chukwuenweniwe Nduka, while making the disclosure, stated that the LL.B Degree programme covers Civil Law, Common Law, Customary Law, Religious Law and Mixed Legal Systems.
In 2018, the College of Law was granted approval by the National Universities Commission to commence the LL.B Degree programme.
Three years later in 2021, after a very tasking and rigorous compliance with the Council of Legal Education Guidelines and Requirements, the University was cleared and granted approval to commence the LL.B Degree programme. This makes it clear and easy transit to the Law School for the Novena University Law graduates.
The College of Law has assembled and employed competent and experienced erudite learned Professors and academic teams to pilot the activities of the College.
Professor Nduka, said the LL.B Degree programme is expected to contribute significantly to the enrichment and enhancement of legal education and practice in Nigeria.
He said it is designed to provide legal education within the realm of a dynamic socio-political environment that encompasses national and global trends and challenges.
According to him, the main focus of the LL.B Degree programme is to create an environment that encourages intellectual rigour, analytical and critical engagement as well as profound ethical standards.
Nduka who explained that the programme will produce law graduates who can compete favourably in legal, social, economic and political developments on a global scale, added that it is designed to produce lawyers readily capable of coping with the legal needs of the society in the light of social, economic, political, cultural and technological advancements.
”Graduates of the LL.B Degree programme would be able to deliver competently on the expectations of employers and other users of their services in government, legal practice and academics,” he said.
Explaining further, the Vice-Chancellor opined that the LL.B Degree programme aims at providing the law undergraduates with a sound foundation of legal education by teaching law in the light of technological, social, political and economic changes.
He said that with respect to the Law courses, the curriculum covers new and modern frontiers of legal training that are crucial to national development.
Such laws include, but are not limited to Environmental Law, Oil, Gas and Energy, International Trade Laws, Information Technology and Communication/Cyber Security and Gender Laws amongst others. Nduka pointed out that the contents of the courses also reflect global developments.
”The Programme is based on the course credit system, which offers students a broad-based and qualitative legal education through the conscious combination of legal and non-legal courses at the teaching, research and community service levels to produce lawyers who have a wide knowledge of the society and environment and readily able to use the law as a tool for the solution of social, political, economic and cultural problems in the society, ” he said.
Nduka stated that the aim and objective of Novena University College of Law are to ensure that Law is taught as it exists in any part of the world.
He added that the seasoned Professors of Law at the Novena University College of Law ensures that every Law student adopts a comparative approach to legal education.
”We will ensure that our law Students are imbued with general knowledge and understanding of the Law. Our Professors will also work on the Students’ intellectual ability to apply research, knowledge and analytical skills to solving theoretical and practical legal problems.
”’Another key area that our law students in the Novena University College of Law are acquainted with is principles of the judicial process and legal systems, as well as their interaction with socio-economic frameworks,” he pointed out.
Novena University College of Law vision is to develop an inclusive and thriving community of learners and researchers for impact in our contemporary globalised legal environment and to unlock innate talent, nurture potential, and provide knowledge and practical skills for success through the development of a flexible, modern and interdisciplinary curriculum, underpinned by research, working with diverse partners in a student-centred, supportive and nurturing environment.
