Course: INTRODUCTION TO LEGAL THEORY AND ITS APPLICATIONS

(First Year LLB Students)

THE LEGAL PROFESSION

The legal profession is one of the oldest professions in the World. Its development in the
world and, indeed, in this Country was not without serious challenges and pitfalls.
Unfortunately, its initial journeys were not documented. Much of the documentation of the
legal profession started with modern civilization. This is partly true because before modern
civilization, what applied was the law of the jungle.
The term “profession” originated from the Latin word “profess” which means to take a vow
or make a public declaration.
Here in Uganda, the term “legal profession” refers to a body of enrolled lawyers cum
Advocates who are members of the Uganda Bar1.

1. The Evolution and History of the Legal Profession in antiquity.

Lawyers and humanity have had important interlocking relationships dating back to man’s
creation. Unfortunately, this link between law and man was not explicitly catalogued. At the
turn of this century, legal anthropology suffered a setback where in order to prove the
existence of such link, a scientist duped research and claimed that he had found the skull of
an ancient lawyer.2
Sadly, the skull later turned out to be a homemade one which had combined the larger jaw
of the modern lawyer with the skull cap of a homo sapiens.3 On discovering this hoax, the
science of legal anthropology was set back fifty and more years4.
Dr. Margret Leaky5 is said to have been the first archeologist to give first hand scientific
proof of the existence of the legal profession in antiquities.

11
See Section 1 of the Advocates Act, Cap 267
2
Found in the famous Pitdown Lawyers Case.
3
Homo Sapiens is the only extinct human specie (Latin interpretation: Wiseman) introduced in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus.
Species of genius Home Erectus and a number of other species. See Wikipedia (https://en.m.wikipedia.org>wik)
4

5
Leaky Margret A, The Case of Erectus Hominid; Legal Anthropology, March 1947, P.153

1
At the Olduvai George in Tanzania, she found several legal fragments, but no full case was
found intake at the archeological site.
Her carbonadoing estimated the findings at between 1 and 1.5 millions years ago. Other
Anthropologists argue that the site contained the remains of a fraud trial in which the
defendant sought to disapprove liability on the basis that he was not able to “stand erect”.
The result of this case was found to consider the decline of the Australopithecus and the
rise of home erectus mundane theory.
On the other hand, it is believed that the first complete site was discovered about 150,000
years ago where stone pictograph briefs were found. The briefs concerned a land boundary
dispute between the Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons tribe. The decision was in favour of
the latter tribe and it led to a successive set of litigations marking the demise of the
Neanderthal tribe.6

In the olden days, over ten centuries ago, people regarded as lawyers during that time are
said to have been people wandering around in small groups looking for clients. Eventually
small settlements of lawyers sprang up in the Ur Valley which was the birth place of
modern civilization.7 With this settlement also came the writing invention. Before that,
lawyers were relying on oral bills to collect their remunerations and costs. Most of the
times, their bills would remain uncollected. With the coming of writing, lawyers introduced
written bills and could carry out executions to recover their money. In this regard, it is said
that a lawyer attempted to carry out such execution by attempting to sell the Sphinx which
action annoyed the Pharaoh whereupon he issued a country-wide purge of all lawyers.
Indeed, lawyers were slaughtered. From then, a lot of lawyers trekked into the dessert
wandering and looking for safe places to practice from.8
Before the onset of the Roman Empire, lawyers of that time practiced only in specific areas
of law. Thus sports lawyers handled gladiators, admiralty lawyers drafted contracts for the

6
Widget John B., Did Cro-Morgnon have Better Lawyers?; National History, June 1962. P.135. Also see: Cook
Benjamin, Very Earthly Land Use Cases, Legal Press, 1953
7
This valley existed somewhere in Egypt which was known as the Greece-Roman world.
8

2
great battles in the coliseums, international lawyers travelled with the great Roman armies
to force native lawyers on the other side to sign treaties of adhesions many of which lasted
hundreds of years until they were broken by the Barbarian invaders from North and East
who attacked Rome. The popular pro- bono lawyers who used to represent Christians where
put out of business for over 300 years.

2. The Legal Profession in the Classical Era (800-600BC)

Classical era is the period of all classical history between the 8 th and 6th centuries around the
Mediterranean Sea consisting of interlocking civilization of amount erect and ancient Rome
known as Greco-Roman World. Great thinkers and philosophers of the time such as
Marcus Julio Cicero (106-43 BC), a Roman lawyer and philosopher did a lot to develop
and advance democracy. He was also a great orator. During his time lawyers were permitted
to freely practice law. Legal cases ranged from non-of-the mill goat contract cases to
product liability cases.9 During the period, some people in the society, particularly those in
the high echelons, spoke on behalf of those who were not really articulate enough. Although
the orators practiced as lawyers, they had not got formal education and training. They were
only imbued with rhetoric and argument. In Greece, the state forbade them to take fees for
their work.

In ancient Greece, especially in the City State of Athens, cases were publically tried by
tribunals. Each litigant did present his own case. The defendants were represented by the
head of the house. Private speech writers would prepare speeches and give them to the
litigants to cram and present at the hearing over time. However, close relatives were
permitted to represent their kinsmen. This opened floodgates for litigants to hire orators to
represent them. Fearing that the orators would influence the judges, the state made rules to
forbid orators from getting payments by the indigent litigants. For unexplained reasons,

98
Many Law scholars take Cicero to be the grandfather of the legal profession. See e.g. Omwony Jual J., Key Issues in
Jurisprudence, Law Africa Publication (u) Ltd, 2010
9
The Estate of Socrotes v. Hamlock Wine Company, in Wilson Phillip, Famous Roman Cases; Houghton, Mifflin
Publishers, 1949

3
Athenians did not take the opportunity of learning the law; they only emphasized the
rhetoric skills. They failed to develop distinct standards of professional conduct,
professional association or set disciplinary sanctions through a disciplinary body. 10

In ancient Roman empire, cases were heard by Magistrates. The College of Pontiffs, an
aristocratic group of Roman Catholic Priest who were well schooled in Roman law. So
Magistrates and litigants sought legal advice from this group. Their opinions were called
responses. The common Roman citizens became discontented with this system. Around the
year 255 BC, the College of Pontiffs decided to teach Roman law to commoners and nobles;
and as a result, a new class of legal specialists known as “jurists” developed in the Roman
Legal System. These people formed a body of Juriconsults who gave, free of charge, legal
opinions requested by any citizen or Magistrate. Formerly, in the Roman Republic, there
existed a system known as legis actiones where litigants had to represent themselves in
Court.

Emperor Augustus (31 BC-14 AD) introduced a new procedural system known as the
formula system. In this system, litigants would represent themselves in the Magistrates
Court. The Magistrate then made a formula to guide the Judge in deciding the matter. This
opened the way for orators to be engaged as advocates, and then citizens, orators and judges
would seek legal advice from the jurists. Unfortunately, the judges under both legislations
and formula systems lacked legal training. So, they were only serving on part-time tasks.

Obviously, the jurists become powerful. The Emperor had also ordered that the citizens,
orators and courts had to respect the opinions of these jurists; concomitantly, their opinions
were glossed with the force of law as it were. 11 After a bit of time, the formula system was
replaced by cognition system. Henceforth legal action was commenced with a forward
written complaint. The defendant was then summoned by government to defend himself in

10

11

4
writing. Submission and dispositions replaced the practice of oral testimony. The changes
popularized the role of trained legal agents.
Unlike in Greece, Roman orators received training in the art of persuasion. With the
increase in the technicalities of court procedures, the orators had to acquire legal training. In
the year 429 AD, Emperor Theodosius II codified Roman law in the Codex Theodosius
which was made to form the curriculum for formal training of lawyers. The course lasted
four years of study. Later, Emperor Justinian12extended the course to five years. Law
schools were established in Rome, Beirut and Smyrna. Later in 425 AD, a Faculty of Law
was established at Constantinople University. By the year 311 AD, Roman Advocates
formerd professional associations across the empire. 13 Each Association was attached to a
court in the city where it was situated. After the Bar exams both written and oral, they
applied to be enrolled on a particular Roll which was a test of qualified practitioners.
By the year 400 AD, the colleges in Eastern Europe became “closed corporations.” As a
result, some lawyers who applied to be listed would be put on an endless “waiting list”.
Advocacy tended to become hereditary as those on the list stealthily secured places for their
sons. Sons of the listed advocates were exempted from paying the admission fees which
were by then exhortation. Jurists and advocates employed prestigious life and vestiges of
power in the Roman Empire. Emperor Leo (457-74) equated their work to that of the
military. In 248 AD, he appointed some of them Governors of some Provinces. But lawyers
had to adhere to a high and strict Code of Ethics. Professional Conduct Regulations were
made to control behaviors and work ethics of listed lawyers. A client could sue his lawyer
for damages as a result of the lawyer’s negligence and incompetence. If lawyers charged
fees from their clients, they would face the wrath of the law known as lex cincia. But in the
year 47 AD, Emperor Claudius (10 BC-54 AD) lifted the ban and made the sum of 10,000
sesterces as the ceiling to be charged. This was regarded as a lot of money which common
Roman citizens could not afford.

1210
Emperor Petrus Sabbatius Justinian (485-565 AD) made a Code of Law known as Corpus Juris Civilis which put the
Empire laws under a single set of laws.
13

5
By the year 500 AD, Roman law had attained all requirements of a formal profession basing
on the level of education and services to the public. Unfortunately, this type of Empire
collapsed after the Germanic Barbarian tribes of the North and East descended on it and
conquered it. Henceforth the civil order under which the legal profession had thrived
literally collapsed. This period came to be known as the dark ages of the profession of law.
The conquerors disregarded lawyers and they settled disputes by invoking the wrath of God.
In very serious matters, proof of liability was by ordeal or physical battle.
By the years 1100 AD, a jurist named Graham codified cannon law into a text book code
known as the Dicretum Gratian. The two sets of codes gave rebirth of lawyers in medieval
Europe specialized schools of Roman civil law emerged in Bologna. These schools were
totally based on the Justinian Digest and first church schools based their teaching of laws
on Decretum Gratian. As time went on, students from either code studied parts of the
other. This eventually led to the creation of the “ius commune” which became the wider
general European law.14
From Bologna the study of civil law spread to the entire Western Europe. As a result, by
1175 AD, the Justinian Code had been translated into several European languages. It
should be noted, the early Bologna Law Schools were started by individuals called Masters
who would award Certificates of Completion. These Certificates permitted the successful
students to teach and practice civil law. And as time went on, the teachers and students
formed themselves into associations that later came to be Universities. These mostly taught
common law with a low dose of civil law. These universities eventually established
faculties of law which streamlined the teaching syllabus, imposed the code of conduct,
disciplined members and set up regiments for award of Degrees. The teaching was by
lecturers and public moots.
From 1230 AD, the Catholic Church set minimum qualifications for lawyers who would be
allowed to practice in ecclesiastical courts. By mid-eleventh century, the legal profession
had attained high status in society. There was high employment demand for lawyers. The
most successful ones even rose to the rank of nobility.
1411
“ius commune” or “jus commune” which in Latin meant “common law” (Wikipedia).

6
3. The development of the Legal Profession in England
Around the time Christ was on earth, England was under the occupation of the Romans.
This means Roman law was applicable. Otherwise customary law seems to have been the
dominant law in various communities. In place 450 AD boatloads of Germanic invaders
who included Angles, Jutes, Saxons, Frisians invaded England from the main European
Continent. These people spoke closely related languages which later came to be a big
influence on the legal system. These included sheriffs, guilt oath, writ, bequeath, ward
witnesses, et cetera, which stuck up to this day. About the 10 th Century AD, other groups of
Scandinavians known as Normans or Northern men arrived in England. As time went on
vicinages of Normandy became French culture and language. In 1066 AD, William the
Duke of Normandy15used his French henchmen and conquered England. He introduced
French culture and laws. French became the official language as it was the language of
honour, chivalry and justice. Anglo-Saxon England was left to rustics, hinds and lumpens
with their diverse customary laws.
After William had taken over England, he became the King. As a King, he moved around
the Country inspecting different countries into which he had divided the country imprinting
his imperial power and resolving disputes among his subjects. In so doing, he acted as a
court. When it became too much work and the schedules became too tight, the King
delegated to some of his advisors, curia legis, to resolve the disputes on his behalf and in
his name. This came to be known as the Court of Common Pleas.14The decisions of the
King and later the Courts of Common Pleas in various counties had a lot in common. These
decisions were collected and later published. This is what later came to be known as the
common law of England. The Normans did not attempt to make a new law for the whole
country or impose French law on it.15

15 12
The Councils of Tours of 1236 and that of Longeais of 1265 required 3years of study for those who wished to
practice law in ecclesiastical courts
He came to be known as William the Conqueror, later on as King William

7
Later on, European merchants who traded with England brought law and practice applicable
to commercial transactions. The traders brought in their law with them. In order to attract
these traders, special courts were set up for them in London and other main ports frequented
by them. In these courts, traders were able to have their commercial legal problems settled
according to the laws of their home countries on the main European Continent. These
Courts were also known as “pie powder courts” because the traders used to come to court
with their feet dusty.

When the special courts lapsed, the customs mended the insolvency practices which they
had been applying and were eventually absorbed into the common law of England, mainly
under the unsuitable influences of two of the greatest judges of all time, the Lords Chief
Justice Holt and Mansfield.
At the beginning of the 13th Century, a secular profession of law emerged, in England. 16 But
before this emergence, in the sense of practicing law for reward, there was a clearly defined
distinction between the role of the advocate or prolocutor. 17 The function of the attorney
was to take formal steps on behalf of a client in litigator and to manage suits in his absence;
whereas the advocate was to give assistance in court by reciting the pleading and engaging
in any argument that arose in the matter.
In 1215 King John of England consented to the Magna Carta Liberatum which established
the principle that everyone, including the King, was subject to the law of the land. Magna
Carta guaranteed the rights of the individual, the right to justice and the right to fair
hearing. It established formal law courts and a group of professional advocates were
practicing there. In the 14th Century, the Advocates practicing in the common law Bench
organized themselves into a society known as the Order of Sergeants-at-Law.16 The rank of
Sergeants at Law was conferred by the judges of the Common Plea Courts by admitting
them to the Bar.17 Earlier on, before 1300 AD, a body of law students emerged known as
apprentices-at-law had also emerged. These sat in a Gallery at West minister Hall to listen

16
Was known as Surventes aldegem; Ssee JH Baker, op. cit
17
J.H. Baker, op. cit. at p. 136

8
and take notes.18 When the population of these people grew, many had nowhere to stay
around Westminster. There are stories to the effect that some senior ones among them
rented some properties and converted them into “Inns”19 where these people could stay.20

By 1350 AD, the Inns had acquired educational as well as purely residential functions. The
system of education provided by the Inns consisted of readings or lectures on selected
statutes and moots which involved arguments on points of law. The members of the Inns,
before they could become practitioners, were obliged to attend and take part in some of the
exercises. It was in connection with the moots that the term “Barrister” originated.

The procedures for the moots were by use of a copy of proceedings in the Court of
Common Pleas. The Senior Members of the Inn formed the Bench and were called Masters
of the Bench or Benchers. On the other hand, the junior members of the Inns who were not
yet competent to play a full role in arguments at the Moots, were at first called Masters of
the Inner Bar or Inner Barristers and later students. The distinction between Inner and Outer
Barristers developed only after that one between the Barristers and Benchers, and is first
mentioned in 1502.
In 1518, the first permanent record of calls to the Bar began to be kept in Lincoln’s Inn.
The rank of the Barrister, however, still represented only a domestic standing. During the
sixteenth century, this rank with the Inns began to acquire a wider public significance.21

As the business of the courts expended and the number of lawyers increased, attempts were
made to regulate rights of audience by reference to standing in the Inns of Court. In 1547, a
Royal Proclamation confirmed the right of practicing in the Royal Courts to such Barristers
and students who had been members of an Inn for eight years. 22 In 1559, the judges directed
that Masters of the Outer Bars would not be allowed to plead at the Bar of any Court unless

18
Op. cit . p. 137
19
An Inn ordinarily means some kind of hotel,
20
Many apprentices came from far countries outside London.
21
Baker J.H., Counsellors and Barristers: A Historical Study (1969) 27 CU 205
22
Tudor Royal Proclamation, (Hughes and Lakhin (eds) Vol. 1 No. 294 pp 408-9

9
they were of ten years standing in their Inns. In the year 1574, an Order of the Privy
Council was promulgated in the Inns restricting practice at the Bar to Readers, Barristers of
five year’s standing and in Chancery of five years standing.23

No person could be called to the Bar of England and Wales unless he had been admitted as
a student to one of the four Inns of Court. This restriction was, however, removed by Sex
Disqualification Act.24 In order to become a student, an applicant had to possess certain
educational qualifications and had to produce two corticates of good character. 25

Earlier on, by the year 1400 AD, a new type of lawyer had risen in England which equated
to the modern law clerk in common law practices. His work was to help lawyers and
litigants by soliciting information for them; hence the name “Solicitor”. The Solicitor
moved up to a branch of trained lawyers who had to do University Courses in law and then
undergo training contract called “articled clerkship”. Those who had qualified in a non-
law degree, the “articled contract” would be two years. The successful ones would then
get practicing certificates. Then Solicitors formed and still from much larger part of the
England legal profession. They undertake the general proceedings in the lower courts.
Today, the legal profession in England and Wales is dichotomized into Barristers and
Solicitors. But both are referred to as Advocates.

4. Development of the Legal Profession in Uganda

Before the British colonized Uganda, there was no country called Uganda. What eventually
formed the country known today as Uganda was a conglomeration of kingdoms,
chieftainships and some communities without specific boundaries or central authority. They
lived in tribal enclaves and the law applicable by each tribe was customary law. 26 Despite
settlements between individuals, families and community disputes were settled by elders’

23
Judges Order of 1574, Dugd. Orig. 312.
24
Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919, Section 1
25
Regulation 3(a) of the Consolidated Regulations of the Four INNS of Court (1988) at page 289
26
See Kanyeihamba G.W., Constitutional and Political History of Uganda: From 1894 to the Present; 2nd ed, Law Africa
Publishers (U) Ltd, 2010 p.1

10
councils. Litigants were never represented by lawyers as there were none anyway Native
chiefs of various communities emphasized amicable settlements and reconciliations
between the disputes. This system harnessed cordial relations and peace in these
communities.

In 1894 the Colonial Government declared Uganda a British colony and Britain entered into
various Agreements; first with the leaders of Buganda, Ankole and Toro, and later with
other native leaders in the country whereby the natives accepted British suzerainty. The
areas which the British considered not to be of any significant contribution to them later
were incorporated into Uganda by various Orders-in-Council which were published 27. The
Uganda Order-in-Council 1902, empowered the Commissioner to make laws and publish
them in the Government Gazette*.

In addition to the laws made by the Commissioner, other laws contained in the First
Schedule to the Foreign Jurisdiction Act of 1890 were made to apply to the Protectorate
subject to the Order and the Exceptions, Adoptions and Modifications as was described in
the Order.28 The Order established His Highness the King of England the High Court of
Uganda.29 The Commissioner was empowered to make legislations establishing sub-
ordinate courts including Courts of special jurisdictions.30 The Commissioner was
empowered to appoint and fire judicial officers. The High Court was to make rules to
regulate court practice, procedures, fees and practice regulations for lawyers who would be
permitted to practice law in the Country.31
In 1904, the Commissioner passed Rules for legal practitioners stipulating the people who
would practice law at the High Court.32 Those entitled were:
a) Members of the Bar of England, Scotland or Ireland.33
27
Op. cit. page 7
28
Kanyeihamba, op. cit p.7
29
ibid. p. 9
30
This meant native courts.
31
See Article 10 of the 1902 Uganda Order in Council.
32
The Uganda Legal Notice Rules of 1904
33
Rules 1 of the Rules

11
 b) Solicitors of the Supreme Court in England, or Ireland, writers to the signet and
Solicitors to the Supreme Court of Scotland.
c) Pleaders who had been admitted to practice before one of the High Court in India;
and
d) Native Vakeels34 of India.

Rule 5 of the Rules provided that in any proceedings in the High Court or any other courts
subordinate thereto, native Vakeels were, in the disretion of the judge, to be permitted to
represent “natives” upon such terms and conditions as the judge may think fit. Thus a dual
Court system was established in the country. So, professional judges presided over
proceedings in the Protectorate Courts, and Native Courts were presided over by the “Chief
Judges” who were not literate in English law.35

Native Judges and Magistrates applied only customary law which means that they could not
hear criminal cases. This dual system went on until independence of the country in 1962.
The 1963 Constitution set out how the system of the judiciary would operate. Section 14 of
the Judicature Act laid down the law that judiciary system would apply. In this arrangement,
the Kingdom areas would continue with the existing system. The 1966 Revolution by
Milton Obote abolished the Kingdoms and, thus the old judicial system.

It should be noted that the colonial government did not, since 1902 to 1962, start any Law
School to train lawyers in Uganda. The natives who wished to study law had join one of the
Inns of Court in England or go to India in one of Law Schools.

The first batch of Ugandans who graduated includes students like Eriya Kategaya, Sam
Njuba, Abraham Kiapi, Aloysius Tibamanya, Fred Ssempebwa, John Katende and many
others who later become prominent academicians, law practitioners and political leaders.

34
Vakeel is a Hindu word for “lawyer”.
35
Not “Chief Justice” as in Protectorate Gov’t Courts.

12
When these batches returned to Uganda in the late 1960s, they were not given professional
training as what happens today at the LDC. They simply joined established law firms and
underwent pupillage. Fortunately, there were some prominent Ugandans, Barristers such as
Benedicto Kiwanuka, Chris Mboijana, Godfrey Binaisa as well as Indian and British ones
who had established law firms in the Country, but mostly in Kampala. The willingly took
on most of these graduates. The pupillage programme seems to have been successful legal
practitioners. Few other Dar-es-salam University law school graduates had done their
pupillage with the Attorney General’s Chambers to become State Attorneys. Some of these
State Attorneys later left Government service and set up their private practice or joined
established law firms.

5. The law development centre (LDC) and its role in developing the profession.

In 1952, the Chief Secretary of the Protectorate Government issued a Notice giving the
Country’s Attorney General, the consent of the Governor, to train native Uganda who
wished to join the colonial legal service in his chambers for the England Bar. This led to the
establishment of Nsamizi School at Entebbe. 36 The School gave instructions to native Court
Judges and Magistrates and other students reading for part I of the English Bar
Examinations. Those who passed this exam proceeded to London to do their final part of the
Bar.
In 1963 the Government of the newly independent three East African Countries established
a faculty of law at Dar-es-Salam University in the then Tanganyika.
The faculty admitted students from the three countries; and after graduating with a Bachelor
of Law Degree from the Faculty, students would go back to their respective countries. But
these countries had no established institutions for practical training for admission to each
country’s Bar. So, these graduates did, as I pointed out above, join established law firms in
their respective countries or joined the Attorney General’s Chambers to do pupilage.

36
See S.D Ross, The Growth of the Legal Profession in Uganda to Independence; Makerere Law Journal, Vol.1,
Ocyober 1971, p.142

13
Unfortunately, not all of these graduates could be absorbed into these two systems. It was
also felt that pupilage systems in these two places didn’t give adequate training for
admission to the Bar. Besides, there was the fact that not all graduates were given pupilage
placing.

If we cast our eyes back in history it will be seen, that the first resident pleader was an
Advocate from the colony of Cape of Good Hope although his name was not given. 37 He
had studied in the University of Dublin in Ireland and commenced his practice in Uganda in
the 1905. By October 1907 there were only four pleaders in the country. 38 The Roll of
Advocates that commenced in 1926 had by that year 12 Advocates, 4 of who were Asians
and 8 Europeans. The Europeans continued to be the majority until 1938 when the number
of Asian Advocates overtook the Europeans.
In 1956 the Uganda Law Society was incorporated under Uganda Law Society Ordinance to
give recognition of the Society as being the representative professional body for all enrolled
lawyers in the country. The Society was given power under S.4 to discipline its members.
At the same time the Act required compulsory membership of all its members to the society
so as to be able to practice laws in the country. By independence, the Roll of Advocates
contained a List of 183 Advocates; of those 142 were Asians, 25 Europeans and 16
Africans. Of the 16 Africans on the Roll only 3 were practicing in Uganda, the rest
practiced in other East African countries. The Indian Pleaders had trained in India where
they were first admitted to practice before the Indian High Court; a few of them were
Vakeels who did not have the required qualification; 22 had trained and enrolled in other
common law countries.

As we saw above, the pupilage system in this country left a lot o be desired in post graduate
training of lawyers to become advocates. Consequently, it was felt necessary to provide a
graduate professional training leading to enrollment at the Ugandan Bar. It, therefore, found

37
See Ross, S.D; op. cit. p.138
38
Ibid. at p. 142

14
 necessary to establish an institution to cater for that. Thus, the law Development Centre was
established in 197039 with well spelt out objectives, namely:40
i. To organize and conduct courses of instruction to acquire legal knowledge, professional
skill and experience by persons intending to practice as advocates in subjects which
shall have been determined by the law council under the provisions of any law in force;
ii. To organize and organize courses for Magistrates and for persons provisionary selected
for appointment as such;
iii. To organize and conduct training courses for offers of Government and members of the
armed forces of Uganda with a view of promoting a better understanding of the law;
iv. To organize and conduct courses in legislative drafting;
v. To organize and conduct courses for officers and personnel of Court with a view of
improving their efficiency;
vi. To assist any Commissioner who may be appointed in the preparation and publication of
a revised education of the laws of Uganda
vii. To assist in the preparation of reprints of Acts of Parliament in accordance with any law
for the time being in force;
viii. To assist the Law Reform Commission in the performance of its functions;
ix. To undertake research into any branch of the law;
x. To hold Seminars and Conferences on legal matters and problems;
xi. To collect, compile, analyse and abstract statistical information on legal and related
matters;
xii. To assist in the provision of legal aid and advice to indigent litigants and accused
persons in accordance with any law for the time being in force;
xiii. To compile, edit and publish Law Reports for Uganda;
xiv. To publish periodicals, bulletins, digest or other written material concerned with legal
and related matters; and
xv. To disseminate and promote generally a better knowledge of the law;

39
The LDC was established by The LDC Act, Cap. 132
40
See the LDC Prospectus for the year 2000/2001, LDC Publications, Kampala, Uganda.

15
 The Centre had to have such other functions as the Attorney General could from time to
time specify by Statutory instrument.

6. The Role of an Advocate in Society.

An Advocate is a professional lawyer who may be self-employed or independent, or

employed in the public bodies, and in the private sector such as banks, industries and
companies.

The professional lawyer also plays non-professional roles which have a critical bearing on
his/her professional ones. These roles form an integral part of his/her totality. The most
important roles an Advocate plays is to work in private practice and in the Judiciary. In
these areas, the Advocate must be able to relate to his/her clients, identify their legal
problems and competently deal with them. In doing so, he/she has to carry out
investigations; drafting the relevant pleadings and all the other necessary documents;
getting in touch with Counsel of the opposite party and explore all the possible avenues for
amicable solutions, such as settling the litigations out of Court. He/she will represent his/her
client in Court from the start until the disputes are concluded.

Lawyers who become judicial officers must administer justices in courts of law. Judicial
and quasi-judicial bodies largely depend on lawyers to determine issues of both fact and law
which may be presented to them for settlement. Here, the Advocate has to listen to all those
with the legal capacity to appear before him/her. He/she then has to weigh all the evidence
given, apply the relevant law and principles of justice and come to a decision.
Very often lawyers may also be elected into Parliament and charged with the formulation of
broad policy guidelines, censure improper government actions and pass of laws. He/she
may operate at two levels in the making of laws. Firstly, he/she may singly, or jointly with
others, draft and introduce bills into the Legislative body. He /she is expected to

16
competently defend the same during debate. Secondly, the lawyer may contribute to debates
on bills introduced into the legislative body by the state or fellow legislators.

Lawyers do other duties in other fields such as teaching. A lawyer may be appointed as a
lecturer or as a consultant to pass legal knowledge on to other people.

The lawyer should be able to understand human nature as he/she deals with human beings.
It is his/her conduct and attitude which form the basis of the legal problems the lawyer must
deal with. A person might be the victims of other people’s activities. He/she needs to know
how much such victims may be affected physically and psychologically by such activities,
and how such effects may be translated into legal problems and solutions. On the other
hand a person may do acts which injure others. Again, the lawyer needs to know the
possible physical and psychological or other causes of such activities and their
consequences on other people, and their legal significance. So, the lawyer needs to have
basic knowledge about physical, biology and chemical sciences, as well as psychology, ably
handle legal problems resulting from such people’s activities. Regardless of where they
practice their trade, the subject or objects are human beings.

It should be noted that the lawyer is not going about his/her own affairs; he/she is on a
mission for someone else. Ontologically, a lawyer can not exist aimlessly without his/her
clients. An Advocate is an “attorney” – that is, someone other people have “turned to.”

Admission to practice is, simply the privilege of practicing in an almost exclusive right to
manipulate one of the three coordinate branches of government. (The right is almost
exclusive because anyone can go to Court by himself/herself – in proprio persona, or
“propse,” as the lingo has it. He/she just doesn’t have much chance of winning, because
he/she doesn’t know what the Court is looking for. From the fertile soil of this privilege to
enforce the law on a client’s behalf springs the entire lush garden of the lawyer’s work.
Wherever there is a human activity that may produce disputes that a Court is empowered to

17
settle- between heirs about a will, landlord and tenant, driver and pedestrian, husband and
wife, buyer and seller, the state and its citizens – only a lawyer can give people that
confidence in the security of their positions that most of them need if they are to function
effectively in a time of stress.

18