LLM in ODL sans BCI nod will not be recognised for UGC-NET, PhD

LLM in ODL sans BCI nod will not be recognised for UGC-NET, PhD 

BCI reaffirmed in 2020 that hybrid and ODL-based legal education cannot be comparable to traditional education, which in effect, renders these programmes pedagogically inadequate 

Rajlakshmi.Ghosh@timesofindia.com 07.07.2025

To stop the proliferation of unapproved Master of Law (LLM) programmes offered online or through distance (ODL) and hybrid modes, the Bar Council of India (BCI) has issued an advisory stating that offering such programmes without its approval is unlawful. Experts agree that such practices dilute the statutory rigour required of LLM degrees and by misrepresenting a diploma as a postgraduate law qualification, the options for candidates wanting to teach in law colleges is getting limited. 

The BCI’s notice, sent to the vice-chancellors of law varsities, also includes a letter authored by Justice Rajendra Menon, former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court and cochairperson of the standing committee on legal education of BCI. The letter, addressed to all the HCs, calls for necessary action. Many institutions, including universities and private centres are offering PG legal education programmes through ‘unconventional delivery formats’ without securing the mandatory approval from the BCI, and these include online-only, blended learning, and open and distance learning models. Since there are several universities that do not shortlist candidates for teaching positions till they have a full-time LLM degree, such programmes are likely to put candidates at a disadvantage. “Part-time and online courses, under whatever nomenclature should be discontinued as the practice of distributing degrees sans proper education and training compromise legal education standards,” says Vageshwari Deswal, professor, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi (DU). The notice states that any LLM or equivalent legal programme offered in online or hybrid modes under misleading nomenclature such as LLM (Professional) or MSc (Law), without prior approval of BCI, is unauthorised and will not be recognised. The high courts were asked to take note of this regulatory move, and ensure no appointments, promotions, or academic decisions were made based on qualifications that did not have the sanction of the BCI. 

Maximising Profits 

“The BCI had issued a circular in May last year (BCI-0468-2024) mandating guidelines and rules of legal education. Despite that, some institutions continued to flout the prescribed standards with an aim to maximise profits by increasing seats and enrolling students parttime as well as online. In case of misleading nomenclature, whether it is LLM Executive, or LLM (Professional) or MSc Law, the fact remains that unless it is certified to meet the established standards required of a master’s law degree, it would be of no use to the students,” says Deswal. Evidently, terms such as ‘blended’ or ‘executive’ are at times being misused to cover up for what are otherwise online programmes. “The purpose of an LLM Executive programme is perhaps more along the lines of Executive MBA. It is pursued just to decorate one’s CV or profile. In most executive courses, academic rigour is not the same as in the traditional format,” says Faizan Mustafa, vicechancellor, Chanakya National Law University, Patna. 

In the past, the BCI had issued show cause notices for breach of norms and is now in the process of issuing to many more institutions for offering LLM or similar legal programmes without the requisite BCI nod. Such degrees or qualifications will not be recognised for academic appointments, UGC-NET eligibility, PhD registration or judicial services. “While the institutions that have granted such degrees will not be able to refuse appointments to their own graduates, but other institutions will not take them. This will limit candidates’ career growth and also adversely impact the reputation of such institutions. And if the BCI or UGC decide to withdraw their recognition on grounds of non-adherence to prescribed standards, then the institutions could face existential crisis and students enrolled in them would have an uncertain future,” Deswal says. She cites DU’s two-year full-time and a three-year part time LLM course where even in the part time courses, classes are held in physical mode but after 5 pm. “The standards of legal education at the master’s level are non-negotiable and that is why the course runs for an additional year,” Deswal adds. 

The BCI had reaffirmed in 2020 that online and ODL-based legal education cannot be comparable to traditional contact-based education, which in effect disqualifies such online or hybrid programmes. Even the Distance Education Bureau (DEB) under the UGC in 2023 had prohibited courses in professional fields like law, medicine, and engineering from being conducted online without statutory approval which makes it imperative for institutions to discontinue such courses. “Ideally, anyone who wants to be a law teacher should do a course which is recognised both by UGCand BCI,” Mustafa says.