I WRITE with regard to the issue of access to legal education. I absolutely agree that elitism is going on. It is about time the University of the West Indies (UWI) and the Jamaican Bar Association wake up to the realities of competition.

I did my law school and law degree in England. The reason for this is because I could not even get on to the programme in UWI. There is a market for legal programmes, so why not exploit it. For example, some countries don't have a law school and people wishing to enter the legal profession have to travel abroad and pay thousands of dollars.

We can offer our programmes to some of those people. Look at England where most of the law schools are privatised and accredited by the Bar Council and/or the law society. Competition is healthy. Let the elitism go and let commercial reality prevail. This is a new dawn, and the legal profession should not only be a place for the elite and their children.

I am, etc.,

Venessa Mclean

venessamclean@yahoo.co.uk

England