University Law College, Bangalore University

ULC is administered and maintained by the Bangalore University (BU),[1] which was started originally in 1886 at Central College, later given status of Degree awarding body through its own name in July 1964 under the Mysore Act No.26, later replaced by the Karnataka State Universities Act.[2] The university offers a wide range of curricular options encompassing 9 faculties which include both traditional as well as modern intellectual disciplines.[3] With as many as 600 affiliated Colleges,[4] 75 Post-Graduate Departments, more than 360,000 students pursuing undergraduate programs and 7,362 students specializing in postgraduate studies, the Bangalore University has grown to be recognized as one of the largest universities in Asia.[5] The Bangalore University has been accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC)[6] in 2001 and awarded Five Star Status.[7] The university is a member[8] of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU),[9] and has also received the recognition of University Grants Commission (UGC).[10]

The Faculty of Law of Bangalore University offers courses both at UG and PG level. The University Law College (ULC) is the only constituent college of law directly administered by the Bangalore University. Prof Dr N Dasharath is the Dean for the faculty of law. ULC hosts a few well-qualified and experienced faculty and a resourceful administrative staff.[11] The visiting guest-lecturers and professors, mostly legal practitioners, lend flexibility and expertise to the academic staff of ULC.

In the era of privatization and commercialization of education in India, ULC continues to uphold the philanthropic tradition in Indian education by dispensing affordable legal education and reaching out to every strata of the society. With a fee structure that amounts to a fraction of the fee charged by most private legal institutions in India, ULC continues to provide its students with the platform to equip themselves with knowledge they can apply to influence legal and social causes.

From the early days of its inception, ULC was situated in the Central College Campus of Bangalore University, close to the legislative and highest judicial seat of the State. However, at the beginning of the academic year 2006-07, ULC shifted from the heritage campus to a new spacious building situated in the sprawling Jnana Bharathi Campus of Bangalore University, which is located on 1,100 acres (4.5 km²) of land close to the Kengeri suburb of Bangalore. This state-of-the-art new facility hosts eight class rooms where formal teaching sessions are conducted for both B.A., LL.B. and LL.M. programmes, two seminar halls, an independent library and an administrative block with chambers for the principal, the chairman and dean, and all teaching faculty members. The Bangalore University canteen and other shared facilities are located close by. This new eco-friendly campus is also equipped with rain water harvesting system. In addition to these facilities, though ULC is a non-residential law college, separate hostel facilities are available for male and female students within the Jnana Bharathi campus of Bangalore University.

The erstwhile Government of Mysore (now the State of Karnataka) started the college in the year 1948. It was previously known as the Bangalore Government Law College. Prof. Narayan Rao was the first principal of the college. From 1964, ULC was brought under the Faculty of Law of Bangalore University. ULC started with a two-year course, and later offered a three-year postgraduate LL.B. program till 1986.

In 1982, Prof Dr V.B. Coutinho became the principal of ULC. During his term, the college emphatically transformed into one of the first professional law colleges in the country by introducing the five-year integrated B.A.L., LL.B. program for the first time, in the academic year 1986–87. This was an initiative to achieve higher standards in legal education. A few years thereafter, the Committee on Subordinate Legislation of the 10th Lok Sabha, the Committee of Judges on Legal Education appointed by the Chief Justice of India in 1993, and the All India Law Ministers Conference in 1994 unanimously recommended the adoption of the five year LL.B. program as the course for professional legal education.[12]

At present, ULC offers:

• the five-year integrated Bachelor of Laws (B.A. LL.B.)(Hons) program, a semester program with 60 students admitted each year; and
• the two-year specialized Master of Laws (LL.M.) program in 5 different branches, with an intake of 12 students per branch (Criminal Law - Business Law - Constitution and Legal Order - Labour, Capital & Law - Environmental Law)

A challenging curriculum and a diverse student population at ULC prepare the students for success in law practice, litigation, business, public service, and teaching. The experience and exposure to various facets of academic and clinical legal training at ULC is unparalleled. Recognizing the necessity of experiential learning, ULC has developed a state–of–the art clinical program offering students an opportunity to be associated with the legal profession through seminars/workshops,[13] internships, mandatory trial-court visits, legal-aid programs, research & projects,[14] model parliament and moot court activities. Legal education at ULC equips the students for the complete spectrum of career opportunities available to lawyers, and provides them with the capability to adapt to the rapid pace of change that characterizes modern legal practice. As a testimony to this fact, among ULCs graduates are many Supreme Court and High Court Justices, renowned public servants, bureaucrats, lawyers and academicians of repute.

The National Service Scheme is an Indian government-sponsored programme under the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports of the Government of India.[15] ULC established a NSS unit in 2008, with about a hundred student-volunteers. The NSS unit at ULC has been actively involved in many social service activities in rural areas and has organized blood donation camps. NSS volunteers have also contributed towards the eco-friendly theme of the new campus by enriching the greenery in the campus with many plants. Dr Sathish Gowda N, Associate Professor, served actively as NSS Programme Officer since 2008. Currently, Associate Professor Dr Chandrakanti L is the NSS Programme Officer at ULC.

The annual national level moot court competition hosted by ULC is the flagship activity of the student body, the Society of Mooters. The competition attracts participants from law colleges all across the country. The justices[16] of the High Court of Karnataka[17] preside over the finals of the moot court competition. The twenty seventh edition of the All India Moot Court Competition of ULC will be held in June 2023.[18]

ULC regularly organizes annual sports day and other sporting events such as intra-collegiate football, basketball and cricket tournaments for both boys and girls.

ULC also hosts an annual inter-collegiate literary and cultural festival, in addition to a host of intra-college cultural activities. Having successfully organized such festivals in the past under different names, ULC continues this tradition with its law festival called Jus Celebre.