Council of Legal Education Standards for Law Report Collection in

International Journal of African and Asian Studies www.iiste.org

ISSN 2409-6938 An International Peer-reviewed Journal

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Council of Legal Education Standards for Law Report Collection

in Nigerian Universities

Oliver T. U., Onwudinjo, Obianuju E. Nwafor-Orizu Hope C.,Ilorah

Amaka F. Nwofor

Prof. Festus Nwakor Library

Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nigeria

Abstract:

The study investigated the development of law reports collections in the South East Universities in relation to the

Council of Legal Education standards. The scope consisted of 49 titles of local and foreign law reports listed by

Council of Legal Education as accreditation bench mark and involves seven law faculty libraries in the

universities South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria that offer law programme. The instrument for data

collection was the standard check list released by Council of Legal Education. This check list was found

appropriate and was adopted for this study. Two research questions were formulated for the study. The findings

showed that two law libraries, NAU and UNEC met the Council of Legal Education standards in foreign law

reports, while three law libraries, ABSU, EBSU and NAU met the standards in local law reports.

Recommendations were made which include among others, the need for adequate funding of law libraries to

enable them purchase the required law materials.

Keywords: Law reports, Legal Education, Law Library, Council of Legal Education, accreditation,

1. Introduction

Ukpanah and Afolabi (2011) defined law library as a collection of legal information organized for use of those

seeking to qualify as, or who have qualified as lawyers, and those enacting or administering law. It is a special

library serving the specific needs of its users. The users include members of the legal profession, that is,

practicing lawyers, judges, magistrates, state counsels, law teachers, law students, members of the House of

Assembly, House of Representative and Senate. The contents of a law library are made up of primary and

secondary sources which include Acts of Parliament, Gazettes, Reports of Cases, digests, books of law and

books on law which include treatises, commentaries, journals, textbooks, encyclopedias.

Library collections are total accumulation of books and other information materials owned by a library, and are

expected to be geared towards meeting the objectives of the parent institution. Oseghale (2008), observed that

developing a balanced and useable collection is an important aspect of library services. Library collections,

therefore, are built to meet the information and research needs of any academic programme.

During accreditation exercise of any faculty of law programme, the law library plays significant and prominent

role in assessing and judging the faculty. In building a law library collection, efforts should be made to expose

collection gaps which in some cases may or may not be totally filled during such accreditation visits which

usually come up every five years. For the faculty of law libraries to maintain a balanced collection, meet the

demands of students, lecturers and law professionals and pass accreditations conducted by the regulatory bodies,

the National Universities Commission and the Council of Legal Education, there must be adequate collections

and other law programme requirements put in place.

Accreditation of degree and other academic programmes by the National Universities Commission means a

system for recognizing tertiary educational institutions (universities and programmes offered in these institutions)

for a level of performance, integrity and quality which entitles them to the confidence of the educational

community, the public they serve and the employers of labour. Accreditation is usually based on minimum

acceptable standards. Some institutions in the past have failed accreditations because of their inability in

meeting the accreditation requirements with regards to the law libraries collections. The failure of accreditation

by any institution or faculty means loss of confident by students, parents and the general public in the university

concerned. According to National Universities Commission (1989), in any faculty of law accreditation exercise,

if all the facilities, equipment and personnel are put in place and are adequate, but the law library collections are

inadequate, the academic programme must fail accreditation.

The Council of Legal Education has provided university law libraries’ collection standards. Adequate funding

by universities is required to put in place an adequate library for the academic programme. According to

Nwangwu (2000), under-funding has been a serious problem facing university education in Nigeria. Emphasis is

laid on accreditation requirements by both National Universities Commission and the Council of Legal

Education. But National Universities Commission’s emphasis lies more on requirement to enable students to

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ISSN 2409-6938 An International Peer-reviewed Journal

Vol.13, 2015

183

pass their first degree (LL.B) and Council of Legal Education’s emphasis covers all law programmes up to

Doctorate degree (Ph.D.)

While studies by researchers such as Khan and Bhatti (2012), Tuhumwire and Okello-Obura (2010) and

Thanuskodi (2012) have dealt into issues of legal information needs and seeking behaviours of law library users,

the aspect of accreditation issues in faculty of law of Nigerian Universities appears not to have been explored. A

study in this important area with reference to South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria seems to be nonexistent.

This is the motivation for this study and the gap in body of knowledge in legal literature that it intends to fill.

Research Questions:

The following research questions guided the study.

• What is the extent of the development of law reports (foreign) collections based on the

Council of Legal Education standards in faculty law libraries in universities in South East

Geopolitical zone of Nigeria?

• To what extent have faculty law libraries in the South East Geopolitical zone of

Nigeria developed their law reports (local) collections, an accreditation requirement, based on the

Council of Legal Education standards?

Review of Related Literature:

Libraries have passed through series of historical development. During the developmental process, various kinds

of definitions have been given to library in consonance with its original purpose. According to Olanlokun and

Salisu (1993), library is a place entrusted with the acquisition, organization, preservation, storage, retrieval and

dissemination of information in whatever format it might appear. A law library, according to Ukpanah and

Afolabi (2011) is a collection of legal information organized for use of those seeking to qualify as, or who have

qualified as, lawyers and those enacting or administering law. It is the pivot on which the faculties of law

revolve for attainment of their educational excellence, goals and objectives. It is imperative that law libraries

must strive to build adequate law collections that are adequate in both quality and quantity.

Collection is the sum total of the materials a library has at a particular time. Ezema (2004), explained that

collection refers to the size of materials in terms of volumes a library has in its possession at a time noting that

the collection may include books in various subjects and general reading, reference books, periodicals,

pamphlets, documents and manuscripts, and archival materials. Collections involve discovering weak areas of

the collection that need to be empowered, as well as the strong areas that need to be evaluated with a view to

reaffirming their relevance in satisfying users’ demands (Duru and Onwuama, 2006).

Kotso (2007), argued that the need for standard collection for the law libraries in terms of quality and quantity

cannot be over emphasized. He further said that they must have the depth of the subject of law as well as the

disciplinary diversities. Other issues related to a standard law collection focus on how current and how relevant

they are. The quantity should be such that the library users should not have to struggle before they can get the

books to use.

It is not possible to discuss the issue of the holdings of the law library collection without relating it to funding of

the library and to autonomy, either partial or full. Idowu (2006) said that no matter what standards are being set

for the composition of materials, the flow of adequate funding is paramount. Some measure of autonomy on the

part of the law librarian to make decisions on what to acquire and how to acquire them should be a settled matter

in all universities. A situation whereby unsolicited or unimportant materials, Idowu (2006), said are acquired

and stocked to gather dust should no longer be allowed to exist in our law libraries. Adequate funding is a sine

qua non to an effective law library management.

Idowu (2006), made a worthy case for autonomy when he noted that: “autonomy is needed to ensure

professional purity and professionally guided actions”. Auyo’s fear, he said, is hinged on the bureaucratic

bottlenecks that go with managing funds in our public institutions. Financial independence is highly desirable in

setting standards and meeting the needs of law library clientele. A situation where funds meant for the law

libraries are diverted to other purposes by the university authorities is worrisome.

Accreditation, according to National Universities Commission (1989), is the tool used around the world to

monitor, assess, and evaluate the standards and quality of education a student receive at a college, university or

International Journal of African and Asian Studies www.iiste.org

ISSN 2409-6938 An International Peer-reviewed Journal

Vol.13, 2015

184

other institution of higher learning. It is only through the process of accreditation that new students, returning

students, and families of students can trust that the education they are paying for is valuable and worth their time,

money and effort. Accreditation status indicates that a college, university, or programme meets the standards of

quality set by the accreditation organization in terms of faculty, curriculum, administration, libraries, financial

well-being, and student services.

The National Universities Commission (as cited in Akomolafe, 2009) stated that the objectives of accreditation

of academic programmes in Nigerian universities are to ensure that at least the provision of Minimum Academic

Standards documents are attained, maintained and enhanced. Employers and other members of the community

are assured that Nigerian graduates of all academic programmes have attained an acceptable level of competency

in their areas of specialization. International communities are assured that the programmes offered in Nigerian

universities are of high standards and their graduates are adequate for employment and for further studies.

For any accreditation exercise to be successful and approved, it must follow a set standard. There are standards

in law libraries’ management which covers the collections, staffing, physical structure, security, funding,

services and others. On law library building, Tuyo (2007), said that the Council of Legal Education, mindful of

the importance of a standard law library made it an important condition that a faculty of law must have a

separate standard law library before accrediting the law faculty. The library building’s layout should be such

that would make administration of the library easy and efficient. Photocopying facilities, for example, should be

in place, easily accessible to the users without it being too close to the entrance for security reasons, and the fees

charged should also be affordable to the students.

In organizing the law library materials, the Council of Legal Education recommended the use of a standard and

common classification scheme – Moys Classification Scheme for all law libraries in Nigeria. This makes for

uniformity of arrangement and easy dissemination of materials. The sitting arrangement should be such that it

would be close to the collections on the shelves. The tables and chairs should be durable as well as being

comfortable. As we are now in the IT age, Tuyo (2007) opined that time has come for the law libraries to be

connected to a network whereby interested readers should have access not only when they are in the library but

also when they are outside the library.

The National Universities Commission (1989), which is the regulatory body and clearing house for universities

in Nigeria has stressed the importance of good and adequate staffing in her approved document which seeks to

set uniform standards for law libraries, both in terms of staffing and holdings. Marafa (2001), stated that for a

law librarian, academic and professional qualification are important factors that would facilitate the execution of

professional responsibilities from a position of strength… The librarian should be a hybrid professional – a

lawyer and a librarian.

It is one of the requirements of the NUC that every law faculty should have a law library which is separate, and

distinct from any other library the university may have (NUC 1989). It is also the provision of the Council of

Legal Education that the law faculties be housed in their own physical facilities (CLE 2002). The law library in

the same way should be distinct from the main library and other campus libraries. This is one of the major

requirements for accreditation of a law faculty by the Council of Legal Education.

To achieve these standards requires a lot of funds. Tuyo (2007), suggested that to achieve these standards, the

budget for the law library should be added to the budget of the faculty. This would ensure that the faculty would

have control in the acquisition of law materials for the library. Tuyo (2007), also argued that where the budget

of the law library is subsumed into the overall budget of the university library, there is the likelihood that the

faculty library would not be able to acquire most of the materials it is expected to acquire.

Purpose of the Study:

The purpose of this study is to determine the extent to which university law libraries in the South East

Geopolitical zone of Nigeria developed their :

• Law reports (local) collections; and

• Law reports (foreign) collections, accreditation requirements based on the Council of Legal Education

standards.

International Journal of African and Asian Studies www.iiste.org

ISSN 2409-6938 An International Peer-reviewed Journal

Vol.13, 2015

185

Methodology:

The design of the study was descriptive survey. The survey was carried out in the universities of the South East

Geopolitical zone of Nigeria and in the universities offering law programmes. They are, Abia State University

Law Library, Uturu; Anambra State University Law Library, Igbariam Campus; Ebonyi State University Law

Library, Abakaliki; Enugu State University of Science and Technology Law Library, Agbani Campus; Imo State

University Law Library, Owerri; Nnamdi Azikiwe University Law Library, Awka and University of Nigeria

Law Library, Enugu Campus. The population of this study was the seven Faculty law libraries in the South East

zone of Nigeria.

The instrument for data collection was the check list provided by the Council of Legal Education as accreditation

bench mark. The check list contained 49 titles of Law Reports (local and foreign) which were regarded as core

titles by the Council of Legal Education. The researchers personally visited the university law libraries within

the area of the study with the authenticated check list and checked the collections against the check list. The

check list was used to crosscheck the collections of every faculty law library within the area of the study. Every

law report title listed in the check list was checked against all the law libraries’ author/title and subject

catalogues, the checklist catalogues and the accessions registers to verify if such title was listed among the

holdings of the law library.

During the checking, a title was ticked “YES” if found in the library and “NO” if not found. The data that were

obtained from the study were analysed using descriptive statistic. The simple percentage (%) was used to obtain

the percentage of collections owned by each law library, and this was done by finding the percentage of the titles

available or observed, from the expected titles (CLE standards) for each law library.

The following 5 point scale was used to arrive at the extent/level of development.

V.P. - Very Poor - 0 – 20%

P. - Poor - 21 – 40%

Mod. - Moderate - 41 – 60%

G. - Good - 61 – 80%

V.G. - Very Good - 81 - 100%

Decision Rule: Any law library which scored 70% and above was regarded as meeting the Council of Legal

Education standards while any law library which scored 69% and below was regarded as not meeting the

Council of Legal Education standards. The midpoint between 61 - 80 = 70 and this is the bench mark and pass

mark required by both the National Universities Commission and the Council of Legal Education for passing

accreditation for law programme.

Analysis and Interpretation of Data:

Research Question 1:

What is the extent of the development of law reports (foreign) collections based on the Council of Legal

Education standards in faculty law libraries in universities South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria?

International Journal of African and Asian Studies www.iiste.org

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Vol.13, 2015

186

LAW REPORTS (FOREIGN)

S/No Universities Expected Available Percentage Extent of Decision

Number Number Availability Availability

1. ABSU 23 12 52.17 Mod Below

Standard

2. ASU 23 6 26.09 P. Below

Standard

3. EBSU 23 14 60.87 G Below

Standard

4. ESUT 23 5 21.74 P. Below

Standard

5 IMSU 23 10 43.48 Mod Below

Standard

6. NAU 23 16 69.57 G Above

Standard

7. UNEC 23 16 69.57 G Above

Standard

Table 1: Summary of Descriptive Analysis of Development of Law

Reports (foreign) in the Faculty Law Libraries

Figure 1: Bar Chart showing Percentage Availability of Legal Resources - Law

Reports (foreign) in the Faculty Law Libraries in South East Nigeria

Findings and Discussions:

Table 1 shows that two law libraries in the zone, NAU and UNEC met the Council of Legal Education standards

in foreign law reports in the South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The result also showed that some law

libraries in the zone have more developed collections than the others. The result further showed that the

collections of EBSU (60.87%), NAU (69.57%) and UNEC (69.57%) were more than those of ASU (26.09%)

and ESUT (21.74%). The above differences also showed that while EBSU (60.87%), NAU (69.57%) and UNEC

(69.57%) have good (G) developed collections, ABSU (52.17%) and IMSU (43.48%) have moderately (Mod)

developed collections, while ASU (26.09%) and ESUT (21.74%) have poorly (P) developed collections in

foreign law reports.

Research Question 2:

To what extent have faculty law libraries in the South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria developed their law

reports (local) collections, an accreditation requirement, based on the Council of Legal Education standards?

International Journal of African and Asian Studies www.iiste.org

ISSN 2409-6938 An International Peer-reviewed Journal

Vol.13, 2015

187

LAW REPORTS (LOCAL)

S/No Universities Expected Available Percentage Extent of Decision

Number Number Availability Availability

1. ABSU 26 19 70.37 G Above Standard

2. ASU 26 11 40.74 Mod Below Standard

3. EBSU 26 21 77.78 G Above Standard

4. ESUT 26 4 14.81 V.P. Below Standard

5 IMSU 26 10 37.04 V.P. Below Standard

6. NAU 26 23 85.19 V.G. Above Standard

7. UNEC 26 16 59.26 Mod Below Standard

Table 2: Summary of Descriptive Analysis of Development of Law

Reports (local) in the Faculty Law Libraries

Figure 2: Bar Chart showing Percentage Availability of Legal Resources - Law

Reports (local) in the Faculty Law Libraries in South East Nigeria

Table 2 shows that three law libraries, ABSU, EBSU and NAU met the Council of Legal Education standards in

local law reports collections in the South East Geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The result also showed that some

law libraries in the zone have more developed collections than the others. It further showed that the collections

of ABSU (70.37%), EBSU (77.78%), NAU (85.18%) and UNEC (59.26%) were more than those of ASU

(40.74%), IMSU (37.04%) and ESUT (14.81%). The above differences also showed that while NAU has very

good (V.G.) developed collections in local law reports, ABSU and EBSU have good (G) developed collections,

ASU and UNEC have moderately (Mod) developed collections, while ESUT and IMSU have very poorly (V.P.)

developed collections.

Conclusion:

Two of the law libraries in the South East zone of Nigeria, NAU and UNEC met the Council of Legal Education

accreditation standards in foreign law reports, and three of the law libraries, ABSU, EBSU and NAU met the

standards in local law reports. These findings have thrown light in the adequacy of information needs and

materials reflecting the curricula of the courses being taught in our law faculties, (Onwudinjo, 2014).

Recommendations:

The following recommendations were made.

• Serious efforts should be made by law librarians to comply with the Council of Legal Education bench

mark in the selection and purchase of law books.

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Vol.13, 2015

188

• Periodic assessment of the collections by the regulatory bodies should be ensured to enable law

libraries to improve in their collections.

• Collections should match with the curricula of the faculties.

• Efforts should be made to adequately fund the law libraries to enable them purchase the recommended

core and other relevant materials.

• Law library accreditation minimum requirements should from time to time be reviewed and revised so

as to increase or include important materials published newly or after the release of the minimum

standards.

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okello-obura2.htm

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