In Pakistan's Legal Profession

Many UOL and Lums graduates see the mess, leave, and thrive in jurisdictions where the law is respected. Since they land cushy jobs and secure their futures, this piece is not about them. This is about the majority: local law graduates, particularly first-generation lawyers, from institutions the world has never heard of, struggling to navigate a profession that is seen as a 'kala-coat' mafia.

- The writer is a lawyer. (Dawn/ANN)

machines, their education rooted in rote memorisation and devoid of analytical depth. For these students, the finish line is not a top-tier firm or a glamorous Supreme Court or Islamabad High Court clerkship; it is a desk (or corner) in a district court chamber, handed down by a 'senior' who reminds them daily of their inferiority.

Litigation is presented as the only career option because the Pakistan Bar Council, responsible for setting the standards of legal education, remains entrenched in its old-school mentality. Populated by a generation steeped in rote learning and adversarial litigation, it views modern legal avenues as alien, pursued only by those who can afford international training.