Thousands of Kenyan law graduates could soon have more options for professional legal training if proposed regulations opening the Advocates Training Programme (ATP) to other institutions are adopted.
The Council of Legal Education (CLE) has handed the draft Legal Education (Advocates Training Programme) Regulations, 2026 and the Legal Education (Licensing and Quality Assurance) Regulations, 2026 to Attorney General Dorcas Oduor, setting the stage for major changes in how aspiring advocates are trained.
The proposals would allow accredited public and private institutions that meet prescribed standards to offer the ATP, ending the Kenya School of Law’s long-standing exclusive position in professional advocate training.
What the proposed changes mean for law graduates
The reforms could create alternative routes for graduates who have struggled to secure admission to professional legal training after completing their law degrees.
CLE chairman Prof Collins Odote said the draft regulations provide a two-year transition period for graduates who hold law degrees but do not currently meet the requirements for admission to the ATP.
Those covered would be allowed to sit a pre-Bar or bridging examination before proceeding to professional training.
“We provide, under the regulations, a two-year transition window for those who hold law degrees but for some reason or the other do not qualify to join the programme,” Odote said.
The proposed framework would also introduce common standards for institutions seeking to offer the ATP. These would cover areas such as curriculum, teaching staff, practical training facilities, research capacity and quality assurance.
Why KSL’s monopoly is changing
The reforms follow a 2025 Court of Appeal decision that directed the CLE to establish admission standards and a framework for accrediting other institutions to provide professional legal training. The government says the new regulations are intended to give effect to that ruling.
The CLE has described the reforms as part of efforts to address long-standing challenges involving admission, examinations, access and the sustainability of legal education.
The proposed changes do not, however, mean that KSL will immediately disappear.
The school would remain part of the professional training system as the transition takes place, while other institutions would have to obtain accreditation and meet the required standards.
New rules proposed for ATP examinations
The draft regulations would also change how trainees are assessed.
Students could be evaluated through project work as well as written and oral examinations, with a minimum score required in each unit.
Trainees would have up to five years from admission to complete the programme. The proposals also provide for resits, subject to the prescribed requirements and fees.
The six-month full-time pupillage requirement would remain. Trainees would be expected to work under the supervision of an advocate trainer and maintain records of their practical assignments.
What happens next?
Attorney General Dorcas Oduor said the reforms are intended to bring greater certainty to students navigating the transition from university to professional legal training.
“For many aspiring advocates, the transition from university to professional legal training has, for some time, been characterised by uncertainty,” Oduor said.
The proposed framework is therefore aimed at expanding access while maintaining common professional and ethical standards.
However, the regulations are still drafts. Their provisions will only take effect after the applicable regulatory and gazettement processes are completed.
For law graduates, the biggest potential change is clear: professional advocate training could soon become a multi-institution system rather than a pathway centred almost entirely on the Kenya School of Law.
 to other institutions are adopted.){kind=link}