Exciting Joint LLM programme ‘lives the principles of equitable partnership’ between Global South and North

Given the strong and enduring bond between the Universities of Lagos (UniLag) and Dundee it was perhaps inevitable their two globally renowned law schools developed a shared project such as the new fully integrated Joint LLM, say Professors and programme leads Dayo Ayoade and Peter McEleavy.

“What excites me most about our Joint LLM is that it is a true South–North, Nigerian–UK collaboration, a partnership based on equity and parity of esteem between related, but different educational and legal systems,” says McEleavy, a Professor of International Family Law and barrister who first visited UniLag in 2018.

“In their advanced modules and dissertation students will be able to experience, appreciate and compare both traditions, which will only serve to deepen and expand their analytical perspectives as they continue their legal careers.”

Ayoade, a Professor of Energy Transitions, Extractives and Governance Law at UniLag, is himself a legal practitioner and Dundee alumnus, having earned his PhD from the world-famous Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Mineral Law & Policy (CEPMLP).

“Dundee has been welcoming Nigerians to the East of Scotland for many decades, notably to study in the fields of energy finance and oil and gas law at the CEPMLP,” say Ayoade and McEleavy. “CEPMLP Alumni have gone on to become leaders in the energy sector in Nigeria, across Africa and globally.”

The new Joint LLM, which is in its pilot year with two Nigerian lawyers currently in Dundee for their second semester, goes beyond oil and gas and energy law. It is inspired, say Ayoade and McEleavy, by a desire to promote Global South-Global North comparative learning and understanding, and provide a time and cost-effective pathway for legal professionals, particularly those from West Africa, to undertake advanced legal study at two leading institutions.

Ayoade and McEleavy and their colleagues believe postgraduate education should be about more than someone moving from one country to another, or about one tradition or pedagogical approach being imposed or preferred.

“Differences by their nature will be challenging, they create complexity and for many the easy way is just to hide behind the familiar,” say the Professors. “But if we take the time to understand and embrace differences and the context in which they exist, then it will not only help us to evaluate and reassess our own practices, but find solutions that are not only more equitable but effective and efficient in bilateral or multilateral context. That will be to the benefit of us all.”

The first semester of the Joint LLM is delivered in hybrid format at UniLag from September through December, and includes evening and weekend seminars ideal for working lawyers. Students undertake four modules, from a selection including Comparative Company Law, Law and Practice of Taxation, Energy Resources Law, Secured Credit Transaction, and Comparative Constitutional Law. 

Following assessments, LLM candidates travel to Dundee in early January to complete their second semester in person at the Scottish university.

The second semester allows students to select three modules from a wide range of 15 choices, from oil and gas and energy law to corporate, commercial and environmental subjects. The subjects will be taught in seminar groups of 15-20 people, and African lawyers can attend on a Visitor Visa as they will only be in Scotland for a maximum of six months, simplifying the administrative processes, and reducing costs.

Once LLM candidates complete their Dundee modules in May there is flexibility for them to finish up their dissertation in Scotland or back in their home country.

“The dissertation brings the two elements of the LLM together because, whatever topic students choose, the contemporary legal issue addressed will have a comparative dimension, evaluating it from the perspectives of both the Global South and the Global North”, say Ayoade and McEleavy.

“This comparative approach is reinforced through the dissertation being jointly supervised by an academic at Dundee and at UniLag. In this way the Joint LLM is truly living the principle of equitable partnership on which it is constructed.”

For more information on the Joint LLM, visit here.