Guyana’s Attorney General, Senior Council Basil Williams on Monday insisted that although no records exist to prove that Guyana was granted permission to establish a law school, permission was in fact granted several years ago, citing statements by a former Chancellor of the Judiciary for Guyana.

Mr. Williams sought to clarify that Guyana has not been blocked or refused permission by the Caribbean’s Council for Legal Education from establishing its planned JOF Haynes Law School.

He rebuffed claims by CLE’s Chairman Reginald Armour of Trinidad and Tobago that Guyana was never granted permission to establish its own law school.

Former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, who is also a former CLE member, has also claimed that Guyana never received permission to establish a law school, contrary to the statements of the sitting AG.

While Guyana has not received approval, or has been formally sanctioned by the CLE to operate its own law school, the Attorney General is insisting that the government will move ahead with the construction and operationalization of a law school here.

“The CLE don’t have an archive and the conclusion, looking at materials, is that permission must have been granted,” Williams said.

He told reporters on the sidelines of another regional event that Guyana was in the process of conducting a feasibility study and was looking at all factors, including establishing the school under the auspices of the CLE.

“Nobody can’t stop us from building a law school. It’s just that we are community minded, we are founding members of CARICOM and we feel that we have a right..,we want to build a law school here its too tough for our students,” he added.

He said already the University of Guyana has identified 15 acres of land at Turkeyen where the school is likely to be constructed.

He said too that a Guyanese Committee which comprises of the Chancellor and Chief Justice will likely meet with the CLE in the near future to iron out the issues.

Guyana’s feasibility study, when completed, will likely be submitted to the CLE for further consideration. Guyanese law students current have to leave Guyana and travel to Trinidad to attend the Hugh Wooding Law School where they are saddled with large tuition fees and other expenses.

These students are also faced with uncertainty every year on whether the 25 places which Hugh Wooding offers to Guyanese students will continue to be afforded as there are hundreds of students coming from other Caribbean countries each year.

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