Parliament has begun debating a petition from law students challenging a Bar Council rule requiring all examinations for qualifying law degree programmes to be taken in person from 1 January 2027.
The petition, submitted by students of Zikura International College, Villa College and Avid College, raises concerns over the second amendment to the Bar Council’s regulations on minimum standards for qualifying law degree programmes. The new requirement also applies to students who enrolled before the amendment was introduced.
The students argue in their petition that they began their studies under a system that permitted online examinations and that changing the requirement midway through their courses violates their right to legitimate expectations under administrative law.
During the debate on the matter, Manadhoo MP Husnee Mubarak acknowledged the Bar Council’s authority to amend regulations governing qualifying law degrees but said the timing of the change had created difficulties for students already enrolled.
He argued that students who began their courses before the amendment should be allowed to complete them under the previous rules.
“The general rule of law is that the rules are not applied retrospectively in the laws and regulations. There is no rule that can be applied retrospectively,” MP Mubarak said.
He said students were concerned about having to comply with a requirement that did not exist when they enrolled. Travelling to Male' to sit examinations would also be difficult for many, he added.
“There are a lot of police officers who are students, there are police officers who work in different police stations in different parts of the country,” MP Mubarak said.
Opposition MDP parliamentary group leader Ibrahim Nazil, the MP for Hithadhoo South, noted that Maldives Qualifications Authority (MQA) regulations introduced in 2022 stipulate that degrees cannot be awarded without any attendance at an educational institution.
He questioned how colleges could offer entire programmes online under those requirements, but agreed that the examination rules should not be changed midway through students’ studies.
MP Nazil suggested helping students access examination centres rather than applying the new requirement to those already enrolled.
Huraa MP Anara Naeem said the concerns raised in the petition should be addressed, while noting that the Bar Council had the authority to introduce measures to improve educational standards and strengthen the legal profession.
