Benefits of a Master of Laws Program for Accountants

by Dr Dayanath Jayasuriya PC

It was in the late 1970s, that the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICASL) took a significant step forward by establishing a Business School - described as “an important watershed in the history of the Institute” (Lal Nanayakkara and Lakshman Perera, Saga of an Enduring Journey: Our History, 1959-2009, ICASL, 2010, p. 85).

Under the dynamic leadership of the then President of the ICASL, D. C. Wijesekera, a group of us from different disciplines worked tirelessly to negotiate with a foreign university (University of Wageningen in The Netherlands) to run a collaborative post-graduate Diploma in Business and Financial Administration.

We developed a syllabus tailored to the emerging needs of the country and conducted lectures following a more inter-active dialogue with emphasis on problem-solving than in the traditional university or professional education classroom format.Among those who successfully completed the post-graduate Diploma in Business and Financial Administration are persons who now heading leading audit firms or who work as CEOs or CFOs of multinational companies.

Lawyers and members of other accountancy professional bodies such as CIMA were among those who enrolled for the annual diploma program. The accountancy profession worldwide has evolved over the years. It is no longer a profession that deals with figures and data generated by different business units and consolidate them into what is presented under different labels such as profit and loss account, consolidated statement of accounts and balance sheet.

Whilst its core functions and responsibilities remain focused on accounting and auditing and taxation, the profession now engages in a range of management consultancy and advisory services. Transaction services relating to mergers and acquisitions; structuring corporate financial deals; restructuring and the handling of cross-border insolvency proceedings; participation in arbitration and mediation proceedings; IT advisory services including the development of measures to counter cyber security threats; corporate governance advisory services; and regulatory compliance and reporting are among the key features of the large portfolio of matters that increasingly come within the purview of large and medium-sized accounting firms.

To remain competitive, even smaller firms strive to offer value addition services to their clients.

Members of the accountancy profession often encounter situations where legal, regulatory and compliance issues have to be addressed. Situations which require bargaining and negotiating skills, accountants who are conversant with English, European, US and other international requirements and developments are better placed to assess strategies and promote their clients interests. An old adage is that ‘Knowledge is Power'; this is increasingly proving to be true in a globalised economy with new issues and challenges. In the past, opportunities for accountants who did not possess a law degree or a professional qualification in law to enrol for a LL.M. program in a recognised university were few and far between.

However, a view which is gaining currency is that doors to higher continuing education must be open to those who wish to aspire to reach new heights in their professional career by enhancing their knowledge and skills.

ANC which completed its tenth anniversary recently launched its School of Postgraduate Education. The Ealing Law School of the University of West London (UWL) offers a LL.M. program on International Banking and Finance Law and a LL.M. in International Business and Commercial Law. The Guardiasn has ranked the UWL as the No. 1 Modern Law School in London. The Vice Chancellor of UWL Professor Peter John and the head of the Ealing Law School Professor Malcolm Davies were both over here to launch the event.

The LL.M. in International Banking and Finance Law is structured around four major modules, namely:

• International Banking Law
• Securities Regulations
• International Commercial Law
• International Commercial Arbitration and Mediation Law

The LL.M. in International Business and Commercial Law has the following
major modules:

• Legal Aspects of International Finance
• Laws on International Business Structures
• International Commercial Law
•International Commercial Arbitration and Mediation Law

Both LL.Ms have a requirement for an essay and a written examination at the end of each module of 60 hours of lectures and a 10,000 word dissertation. Research Methodology is a subject that is designed to help in its preparation. Visiting UWL Faculty as well as leading academics and industry practitioners will conduct lectures and inter-active workshops.

As a value addition to Sri Lankan audiences, the ANC School of Postgraduate Education will arrange lectures and networking sessions with a focus on Sri Lankan legal aspects.

There will be 9 hours of lectures for a week. Each of the two semesters will last approximately 4 months. The University will award an “internal” UWL LL.M. The UWL uses the ‘Blackboard’ which is the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) software used extensively in higher education institutions.

The VLE has the unique feature of enabling students to have access to program resources and key information whenever they need them at their convenience from anywhere with a web connection, including mobile devices.The UWL-ANC partnership now enables the LL.M. programs to be completed in Colombo without the necessity to spend time overseas. More importantly, members of the accountancy profession whose studies (for courses conducted by ICASL or CIMA, for example) have included law subjects (e.g. business or commercial law; company law) and have practical experience in dealing with legal matters will be eligible to be enrolled. Their applications will be screened on a case-by–case basis.