The Council of Legal Education (CLE) has today admitted to errors in the Advocate Training Programme (ATP) examination results, amidst ongoing protests by lawyers. The protests, which took place outside the CLE’s office headquarters, were triggered by allegations of irregularities in the recently released exam results.
On July 10, 2024, candidates sitting for the ATP exams raised alarms over the accuracy of the results displayed on the CLE portal. Many noted that the results were identical to those published in 2023, leading to widespread confusion and frustration.
“The Council of Legal Education regrets the display mishap of the Advocate Training Programme (ATP) examination results released on July 9, 2024,” read a statement from CLE. “Following the release of the results, candidates viewed their November 2023 ATP results instead of the April 2024 results.”
The CLE assured the affected candidates that the error was promptly rectified and measures have been put in place to prevent similar issues in the future. The examination authority extended an apology to the lawyers for the distress caused by the incorrect results.
“The results as released are credible and comparable to the performance in previous years,” CLE stated, referring to the corrected results.
In a move to enhance privacy and comply with the Data Protection Act, CLE announced that a PDF containing the results of all candidates would no longer be publicly released. Instead, law students will access their ATP results via their personal portals. However, a PDF document will be accessible at the CLE offices for candidates to review their scores per unit and per attempted question.
CLE also responded to concerns raised by law students by announcing the implementation of effective measures to improve the administration of the ATP examination. These measures encompass the procedures for establishing, assessing, and moderating the exams, serving as the ultimate accountability process.
The Council’s swift response and commitment to improving the examination process are steps towards ensuring transparency and maintaining the integrity of the ATP examinations. Law students and lawyers alike will be closely monitoring the CLE’s actions to ensure such mishaps do not recur in the future.
