KNUST Faculty of Law

KNUST Faculty of Law is the law school of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Kumasi, Ghana. It operates within the university's College of Humanities and Social Sciences and is described as the second law school established in Ghana. Although the faculty's formal LLB structure dates from the early 2000s, its academic roots at KNUST go back to the establishment of a Department of Law in 1970 within the former Faculty of Social Sciences. The original law teaching function was closely connected to the university's emphasis on science, technology, land management and professional education. Law was first introduced as a core subject for students studying for the BSc in Land Economy and Management. The department subsequently contributed law teaching to a number of combined or interdisciplinary programmes, including combinations involving economics, sociology and geography. It also supplied law courses to students in other faculties, reflecting the university's effort to prepare scientists, technologists and other professionals for the legal and regulatory environments in which they would work. A major institutional transition took place after KNUST began restructuring its social-science provision. In 2002, the university approved the transformation that enabled a separate Faculty of Law to emerge. KNUST Council approved a four-year Bachelor of Laws programme in April 2003, and the first LLB cohort entered the faculty in August of that year. The founding academic team included Rev. Prof. E. H. Ofori-Amankwah, Professor Oswald Senedza, Dr Renee Morhe, Dr Ernest Owusu-Dapaa, Dr Anane, George Sarpong, Michael Alokore, J. C. Tarchie, Kwame Anyimadu Antwi, Albert Amankwah and Mr Addai. The faculty's stated educational purpose is to train lawyers and other legally informed professionals while supporting the development of a distinctly Ghanaian body of law through teaching and research. Its graduates may proceed toward legal practice, subject to the applicable professional requirements, but legal training also supports careers in public administration, commerce, regulation, land management, finance, policy and other sectors of the Ghanaian economy. Instruction combines seminars, tutorials, workshops, case studies, oral presentations, written submissions and moot or simulated court exercises. Students are expected to develop legal research, analysis, problem-solving, drafting, advocacy, interviewing and negotiation skills, alongside communication, time-management and teamwork abilities. Assessment on the LLB programme follows university regulations and may include coursework, examinations, presentations and individual or group assignments. The faculty's law library supports its teaching and research mission with Ghanaian and African legal materials, retrospective and current collections, and professional texts covering jurisdictions including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States. Library services have included citation assistance, reserve and loan systems, photocopying, microfilm and microfiche facilities, and access to electronic or commercial legal information resources. The faculty therefore combines Ghana-focused legal education with comparative resources and an interdisciplinary university setting.

KNUST was originally oriented toward scientific and technological education, but the university recognized that its graduates would work within social, commercial, administrative and regulatory systems. To provide a broader educational foundation, the institution created social-science and liberal-arts provision. Law entered this structure in 1970, when a Department of Law was established within the Faculty of Social Sciences. The department initially taught land law as a core component of the BSc Land Economy and Management programme. Its role later expanded. Law courses were incorporated into combined honours pathways involving subjects such as economics, sociology and geography, and the department supplied legal instruction to students in other parts of the university. This early model made law an important supporting discipline for land, economic and social studies before it became a standalone professional faculty. During the university's institutional modernization of the social sciences, KNUST decided in 2002 to create the conditions for a distinct Faculty of Law. In April 2003, the university's Council approved a four-year LLB programme. The first students were admitted in August 2003, marking the beginning of the faculty's formal degree-granting phase. The initial faculty team included Rev. Prof. E. H. Ofori-Amankwah, Professor Oswald Senedza, Dr Renee Morhe, Dr Ernest Owusu-Dapaa, Dr Anane, George Sarpong, Michael Alokore, J. C. Tarchie, Kwame Anyimadu Antwi, Albert Amankwah and Mr Addai. The faculty was established to address Ghana's need for trained legal professionals and to contribute to the development of Ghanaian legal thought. Its remit extends beyond preparation for courtroom practice: legal graduates can contribute to government, business, land administration, public policy, regulation and other sectors where legal knowledge is required. Teaching is designed to connect doctrinal study with practical legal reasoning. Seminars, tutorials, workshops, case studies, oral presentations, written submissions and moot exercises are used to build research, analytical, communication and advocacy capabilities. The law library is an important part of the faculty's academic infrastructure. Its collection includes Ghanaian and African legal sources, current and retrospective materials, and professional works from several common-law jurisdictions. Library support has included assistance with legal citations and research retrieval, as well as access to physical reproduction technologies and electronic or commercial databases. Through these resources, the faculty supports both Ghana-centered legal study and comparative research. The faculty remains an academic unit of KNUST's College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Publicly available reference material supplied for this entry does not establish a separate commercial ownership structure, a current dean or executive roster, specific later degree launches, or documented campaigns, scandals and corporate-style financial events.

• 2003

  Four-year LLB approved and first cohort admitted

  [1]KNUST Faculty of Lawen.wikipedia.org

  KNUST Council approved the four-year LLB programme in April, and the first cohort entered the Faculty of Law in August.

• 2002

  Transformation toward a standalone Faculty of Law

  [1]KNUST Faculty of Lawen.wikipedia.org

  The university approved a modernization of its social-science structure that enabled a separate Faculty of Law to emerge.

• 1970

  Department of Law established

  [1]KNUST Faculty of Lawen.wikipedia.org

  KNUST established a Department of Law within the Faculty of Social Sciences. It initially taught land law as a core subject in the BSc Land Economy and Management programme.

A Ghana-focused university law faculty combining professional legal education, interdisciplinary study, practical advocacy training and research into the country's legal development.

• Undergraduate legal education · 2003

  Bachelor of Laws (LLB)

  The faculty's principal documented degree offering is a four-year Bachelor of Laws programme approved by KNUST Council in 2003. Its teaching model combines doctrinal legal study with seminars, tutorials, workshops, case analysis, oral presentations, written work and practical exercises. The programme develops legal research, analysis, drafting, advocacy, interviewing, negotiation, communication and problem-solving skills.

• Academic support and research

  Legal research and library services

  The Faculty of Law's library supports research and teaching through collections of Ghanaian and African legal materials, historical and current resources, and professional texts from a range of common-law jurisdictions. Documented services include citation assistance, reserve and loan systems, photocopying, microfilm and microfiche access, and electronic or commercial legal information resources.

1. 1KNUST Faculty of Lawen.wikipedia.org
2. 2KNUST Faculty of Law official websitelaw.knust.edu.gh