KAMPALA. A section of law students have written to President Museveni over contentious provisions in the Rules Governing the Bar Course, 2023 administered by the Law Development Centre (LDC).
The aggrieved students argue that the regulations unjustly penalise partial academic failure.
In a letter dated April 13, 2026, signed by Emmanuel Wanyonyi on behalf of the 2024/25 Bar Course cohort, the students challenge Rule 17(2) and Rule 21(5)–(6), describing them as “irrational, punitive, and economically exploitative.”
They argue that the rules disregard prior academic achievement by requiring students who fail a limited number of subjects to repeat the entire programme.
The petition, addressed to the President through Flora Kiconco, Head of the State House Legal Department, singles out Rule 21(6), which mandates that candidates who fail three or more subjects be discontinued from the Bar Course and reapply for admission, even if they have passed a majority of course units.
Students say this provision, read together with Rule 17(2), creates a rigid system that denies supplementary examinations to candidates who narrowly fall outside the permitted threshold, effectively nullifying strong performance in other assessed areas such as Legal Writing, Trial Advocacy, Clerkship, and Group Projects.
“It is both illogical and unconscionable that a student who has demonstrated mastery of most of the curriculum is treated as having failed the entire programme,” the letter states. Some candidates, they add, have passed up to seven out of ten subjects but are still required to restart the course.
The appeal further argues that although distinctions between “core” and other subjects were previously abolished, elements of that classification continue to influence outcomes, resulting in what the students describe as arbitrary academic cut-offs.
The dispute follows a March 31, 2026 clarification by Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka, who reaffirmed that under the current framework, candidates who fail three or more subjects are not eligible for supplementary examinations.
In his communication, Kiwanuka acknowledged the concerns raised ,but warned that departing from the existing rules would undermine the integrity, consistency, and fairness of the Bar Course assessment system.
“Deviating from these provisions would undermine the regulatory framework designed to ensure fair, transparent, and effective administration of the Bar Course,” he said.
However, the students argue that the interpretation produces procedural unfairness, with similarly placed candidates treated differently depending on how their failed subjects are categorised under Rule 17(2).
They are now calling on the President to direct reforms to the Bar Course regulations, including allowing candidates to retake only failed subjects, expanding eligibility for supplementary examinations, and revising the classification structure embedded in the rules.
According to the petitioners, such changes would uphold professional standards while addressing what they describe as disproportionate academic and financial penalties imposed on otherwise competent students.