Norman Manley Law School


The Norman Manley Law School is a law school in Jamaica.

Building and location

The Norman Manley Law School is located on the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies, yet it is a distinct and separate institution. Its building, designed by architect firm Rutkowski, Bradford & Partners, is noted as an example of Caribbean modernist architecture. It is a, two-storey reinforced concrete block masonry building; construction was finished in 1975. It was badly damaged by Hurricane Gilbert in September 1988; a clerestory window broke and let the wind into the building, placing significant uplift pressure on the roof deck.

History

Named for Jamaican statesman Norman Manley, NMLS is one of three law schools empowered by the Council of Legal Education to award Legal Education Certificates, along with the Eugene Dupuch Law School in the Bahamas and the Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad and Tobago. It opened its doors to students in September 1973. In July 2008, former Deputy Solicitor General Stephen Vasciannie was appointed principal of NMLS, succeeding Keith Sobion who had died some months before. In November 2012, Carol Aina was appointed principal following Vasciannie's departure to take up the post of Jamaica's ambassador to the United States.

Partnerships and outreach work

NMLS students are required to perform several hours of field work to graduate. One way they obtain these hours is by participating in legal clinics, through which the needy can obtain legal consultations at a price of J$1,000, far less than the usual tens of thousands of dollars required to meet with a private lawyer. In November 2008, NMLS signed a memorandum of understanding with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to form a partnership and hold seminars on human rights issues, including capital punishment.

Notable students and faculty