Government Law College, Ernakulam

The Government Law College, Ernakulam is an prestigious institution for undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate legal education in Kerala, India. It is situated in the heart of Kochi City. Founded in 1874, it is the first law college in state of Kerala.The college is affiliated to the Mahatma Gandhi University in Kottayam. The College is a recognised Research Centre in Law under the Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam since 2010. The college, which is a premier institution of legal education in Kerala, has a prestigious list of alumni including K.G. Balakrishnan, Mammootty, A K Antony and Oommen Chandy . It is popularly known as Ernakulam Law College or Maharajas Law College.HistoryGovernment Law College's history began in 1874 when legal education was started in Kerala by the Maharajah of Travancore sanctioning the organisation of a law class in connection with His Highness College Thiruvananthapuram . This was intended to enable candidates from Travancore to present themselves for the law examination of Madras University. Those law classes continued until 1894 when the institution was reorganised entirely. The college was raised to the status of an independent college as His Highness the Maharajah's Law College, Thiruvananthapuram, with W.T.A. Cosby, bar-at-law as the first principal. A complete set of rules was formulated by the government for the control and regulation of work in the college. The rules prescribed the qualification for members of the teaching staff.