FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions about LLB, Bar Exam, LLM and other Legal topics - Page 19 of 28

Looking at last year’s results 5475 candidates appeared for the exam and the AIR 1 was at 125 marks and the AIR 5475 was at minus 4.75 marks. (since CLAT has negative marking.)

Now, there are 632 PG seats through the CLAT PG and there will be around 50 PSU posts recruited through the CLAT PG.

So, a ranking of around 700 or higher should get you a PG seat somewhere or a PSU post.

However, PSU posts are quite attractive to a number of students; so the higher the rank the better. Though I don’t have any numbers / data – I would expect the PSU posts to get closed within AIR 250. (Apart from the CLAT ranking, there will also be GD, Interview etc. for PSU posts)

Last year’s ONGC cut-offs were :

Category Cut-off Score
UR 109.25
OBC 98.75
SC 90.25
ST 91.50
PWD (VH) 81.25

Bottom-line : Aim at scoring an AIR of within 300 or higher for a best shot at a PSU job.

We have published an update on the PSUs recruiting through the CLAT PG .

You can read the article here :

Q : May a candidate appear in the CLAT for selection for the post of law officer in PSU who qualified in the CLAT 2017, and is studying at the National Law University in LLM?

Ans :

Yes. You can . . .

AFAIK, nothing prevents a candidate, who is already an LLM student in a NLU / NLS, from taking up the CLAT PG .

You might want to take & re-take the CLAT PG for any number of reasons:
– for testing yourself
– for keeping yourself up-to-date on the CLAT exam patterns
– for trying for a seat in a different NLU
– for applying for PSU recruitments
– for fun! because you like taking exams 🙂

We have published an update (as on 19th Apr ) on the PSUs recruiting through the CLAT PG .

You can read the article here :

Q : Which PSU recruiting through CLAT offers the best salary?

Ans :

We have published an update (as on 19th Apr ) on the PSUs recruiting through the CLAT PG .

You can read the article here :

Q : Can we add Advocate before my name if we passed LLB through distance learning?

Ans :

No.

Not only would that be illegal and unethical, it could also lead to penal action; especially since BCI & the State Bar councils are trying to clean up the profession.

(1) There are no BCI & UGC recognized correspondence or part-time LLB courses in India.

(2) BCI has clearly specified that only full-time LLB degree holders, who clear the AIBE, are eligible to practice as advocates in India. (applicable for all LLB grads post academic year 2009–10)

(3) There are distance / correspondence LLM programs being offered by many institutions & universities – but a LLM degree does not make a person eligible to practice as an advocate; a BCI recognized LLB is mandatory.

Q : What is the best coaching class for CLAT LLM in Pune?

Ans :

You may need coaching for CLAT, but not the the CLAT LLM :

This is a very long answer, copy-pasted from my answer(s) to similar questions . . .

First of all, the CLAT PG LLM entrance exam is a multiple choice objective type exam based on the entire LLB syllabus. But the crucial topics are Jurisprudence & Constitutional law – which together account for 2/3rd of the exam (66%).

Extensive theory is not the best way to prepare for multiple choice based exams. The ideal approach would be to solve as many MCQs as possible, covering the entire syllabus, with focus on the critical areas and solve all the previous papers you can find.

Solve at least two mock tests every day and after you have finished, re-attempt the ones from the previous day till you can blindly click on the right answer without thinking too much.

After all, almost 85% of the questions are repeats / variants from previous years or derived from ‘important questions’ from other similar exams.

The question poster then asked . . . Would it be possible to crack clat PG by studying only for a month?

Yes. Absolutely possible. If the paper had ‘subjective’ part, I would have had my reservations. But the advantage the CLAT LLM paper is :

(1) It is completely an objective paper

(2) There are no ‘analytical’ / ‘quants’ / ‘reasoning’ based questions

(3) A bulk of the questions emphasize more on memory & recognition skills (e.g. Which article says this . . . Which case is for what . . . What Salmond / Austin / Hart or Holmes said etc.)

(4) A significant number of questions are repeated / variations / adapted from previous exams or from other similar exams.)

So, the answer to your question is ‘Yes’.

What’s the approach?

Complete 2 (or preferably 3 or more) mock tests every day. Review the results carefully and make a note of the questions you got wrong and memorize the correct answers.

Repeat the process every day till you circle back to the first set of mock tests and just keep repeating the cycle.

In around 10 – 15 days, you will have become familiar with a bulk of the ‘important’ questions; and you will know the answer by instinct and your scores will start going up.

Most of the LLM entrance questions don’t need any explanation or reasoning . For example, look at the first 6 questions from CLAT PG listed below.

Once you know & remember the correct answer, you can answer these questions & any variations thereof.

1. If any question arises whether a Bill is a Money Bill or not, the decision given by the shall be final:

(a) Finance Minister

(b) Speaker of the Lok Sabha

(d) Prime Minister.

2. Part IX-B of the Constitution of India dealing with the ‘Co-operative Societies’ was inserted by:

(a) The Constitution (Ninety Fifth Amendment) Act, 2009

(b) The Constitution (Ninety Eighth Amendment) Act, 2012

(d) The Constitution (Ninety Seventh Amendment) Act, 2011.

3. Article 280 of the Constitution of India deals with:

(a) Finance Commission

(b) Election Commission of India

(d) Comptroller and Auditor-General.

4. Which provision of the Constitution of India deals with the representation of the Anglo-Indian Community in the House of the People?

(a) Article 331

(b) Article 332

(d) Article 330.

5. In State of Maharashtra v. Dr. Praful B. Desai, 2003 SC the Supreme Court of India held:

(a) Right to speedy trial is part and parcel of Right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution

(b) It is obligatory on the employer to compute the family pension and offer the same to the widow even without making a claim on her part

(d) Recording of evidence through Vedio- conferencing so long the accused and/or his pleader are present while recording is as per “procedure established by law” and hence valid.

6. In which of the following judgment, the scope of writ of Habeas Corpus was widened?

(a) D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal, (1998 SC)

(b) Sheela Barse v. Union of India, (1983 SC)

(d) M.C. Mehta v. Union of India, (1987 SC)

So, if the objective is to score high marks in the CLAT PG LLM, yes, one month of dedicated practice is good enough.

If you are appearing in the CLAT PG , we have published the

Q : Is it mandatory to qualify AIBE to practice in Madras High Court?

Ans :

Yes. It is mandatory.

If you wish to practice as an Advocate / Lawyer anywhere in India, the steps are:

(1) Complete LLB
(2) Enroll with state Bar council
(3) Start practice as an Advocate
(4) Clear the All India Bar Exam – AIBE within two years of enrollment
(5) If unable to clear – stop practice as a Advocate – attempt AIBE and clear it.
(6) Resume practice as a lawyer.

The only exception is if you have completed your LLB before the 2009–10 academic year, you need not take the Bar Exam, you can directly enrol with the state Bar Council and start practice.

Passing the AIBE – All India Bar Exam is not a big challenge, if you plan for it in the right way.

Studying for the Bar Exam is not the same as studying for the CLAT PG or Judicial Services etc.

In other exams, you should try to score the highest possible marks; to score more marks than other competing students – since your aim is to get a higher ranking and get shortlisted for admissions or interview etc.

But the AIBE is different. Your objective is to score at least 40 marks, clear the exam and get your COP.

Also, the exam is a multiple choice, objective type, with no negative marking – which makes life a lot more easier.

More over, it is an open book exam – which makes even more simpler; if you know which book to open 🙂

If you want to do it the hard way, look at the AIBE XII syllabus – there are 19 topics, which cover around 25+ different acts and areas of law; which is a bulk of the LLB syllabus.

Going through all of them would be a significant task. But yes, it can be done, and should be done, if you are simultaneously preparing for other post LLB exams.

If you want to do it the easier way, practice thoroughly with the last 8 years papers (The AIBE papers from 2014 to 2017) and also practice as many mock tests with selected MCQs from all the important areas of the AIBE syllabus

If you look at the previous 8 years papers, you will find several repeated questions + questions from select areas of the syllabus topics and there is a particular pattern in the questions. e.g. important sections, important case laws etc.

So, my suggestion would be to :

[1] Practice all the previous papers – at least three of four times each; so that you can easily choose the answer for the same / similar question.

[2] Practice multiple times with at least ten full-length mock tests with ‘most probable’ questions.

How does this approach help ?

[a] If you complete (1) and (2) thoroughly, you will have practiced around 1800 ~ 2000 MCQs – and all you need to pass the AIBE is to answer just 40 ~ 50 question correctly in the real exam.

[b] As you practice the previous papers + the mock tests, you will be referring to any printed or written material that you have (your text books / Bare acts etc.); so you will become familiar with the acts & laws and also adept at searching & finding the answer for most of the questions quickly.

We at LawMint have put together a prep-pack for the AIBE XII ; which consists of previous 8 papers + 15 full length mock tests.

You can practice each paper online unlimited number of times – so even if you practice each paper three times by the time you take the AIBE, you will have become thorough with around 2300 MCQs across the AIBE syllabus.

Q : How can I score the highest marks in the CLAT PG exams?

Ans :

This is a very long answer, partly copy-pasted from my answer(s) to similar questions and partly edited …

CLAT PG LLM entrance exam is a multiple choice objective type test, based on the entire LLB syllabus. But the crucial topics are Jurisprudence & Constitutional law – which together account for 2/3rd of the exam (100 marks or 66%).

If you analyse previous question papers, almost 75 ~ 85% of the questions are repeats / variants / similar question from previous years or derived from ‘important questions’ from other post LLB exams.

The ideal approach would be to solve as many MCQs as possible, covering the entire syllabus, with focus on the critical areas and also solve all the previous papers you can find.

Solve two or three mock tests every day and after you have finished, re-attempt the ones from the previous day till you can blindly click on the right answer without thinking too much.

The trick is to ‘know’ the correct answer, even if you don’t know why it is the correct choice.

Moreover, there is no explanation required for most of the LLM entrance questions. They are just fact based questions.

For example, look at some questions from the paper. There is no explanation; it is purely about memory.

Examples :

1. If any question arises whether a Bill is a Money Bill or not, the decision given by the shall be final:

(a) Finance Minister
(b) Speaker of the Lok Sabha
(c) Vice-President
(d) Prime Minister.

2. Part IX-B of the Constitution of India dealing with the ‘Co-operative Societies’ was inserted by:

(a) The Constitution (Ninety Fifth Amendment) Act, 2009
(b) The Constitution (Ninety Eighth Amendment) Act, 2012
(c) The Constitution (Ninety Third Amendment) Act, 2005
(d) The Constitution (Ninety Seventh Amendment) Act, 2011.

3. Article 280 of the Constitution of India deals with:

(a) Finance Commission
(b) Election Commission of India
(c) Union Public Service Commission
(d) Comptroller and Auditor-General.

Once you have answered these questions twice or thrice, the fourth time you will easily remember the answers.

Here, the important thing is to ensure that the answer choices are shuffled with each attempt, so that you don’t remember the choice ‘a’ / ‘b’… you actually remember the answer next to the choice. (Which is why we built this into our online prep system at

Q : After doing an LLM from abroad can we practise law I n India?

Ans :

No, you cant . . .

The basic requirement for practicing law in India is a BCI recognized LLB degree.

There are some LLM courses abroad which are open to candidates from any background – either with LLB / without LLB etc. But an LLM alone (from anywhere) does not make a person eligible to practice law in India.

To become a practicing Advocate . . .

[1] Complete your LLB

[2] Enroll with your State Bar Council

[3] You can start practicing immediately, for up to 2 years – either independently or under any practicing Advocate

[4] Clear the AIBE – Bar Exam, within 2 years from enrollment

[5] If you don’t clear AIBE within two years, pause your practice, clear the exam and recommence. (No limit on attempts / age for AIBE)

If you have a foreign LLB degree from a country / university that is recognized by the BCI, you still have to clear the foreign degree equivalence exam conducted by the BCI.

Q : What is the eligibility of admission in any NLU (National Law University) for an LLM program after an LLB?

Ans :

Take the CLAT PG, AILET PG & HPNLET PG . . .

CLAT is the common entrance exam for most of the National Law Schools / National Law Universities across India.

Basic eligibility is 55% in LLB (50% for reserved categories.)

NLU Delhi and HPNLU Shimla do not participate in the CLAT as they have their own separate exams, eligibility is similar to CLAT.

Q : How can I prepare for the LLM entrance exam for getting admitted to the National Law School for an LLM?

Ans :

This is a very long answer, partly copy-pasted from my answer(s) to similar questions and partly edited …

Solve at least two mock tests every day and after you have finished, re-attempt the ones from the previous day till you can blindly click on the right answer without thinking too much.

After all, almost 85% of the questions are repeats / variants from previous years or derived from ‘important questions’ from other similar exams.

The trick is to ‘know’ the correct answer, even if you don’t know why it is the correct choice.

Moreover, there is no explanation required for most of the LLM entrance questions.

For example, look at some questions from the paper. (There are plenty of other questions like them). For such questions, you just need to know the answer as soon as you see the question. There is no explanation; it is purely about memory.

Trying to remember all the articles of the Constitution or all the sections in an act is not required; if you practice plenty of mock tests which have selected questions on the important sections / articles etc. and thoroughly solve all the previous papers; you will remember the answer when you see the question.

Examples :

1. If any question arises whether a Bill is a Money Bill or not, the decision given by the shall be final:

(a) Finance Minister
(b) Speaker of the Lok Sabha
(c) Vice-President
(d) Prime Minister.

2. Part IX-B of the Constitution of India dealing with the ‘Co-operative Societies’ was inserted by:

3. Article 280 of the Constitution of India deals with:

(a) Finance Commission
(b) Election Commission of India
(c) Union Public Service Commission
(d) Comptroller and Auditor-General.

Once you have answered these questions twice or thrice, the fourth time you will easily remember the answers.

Q : Does BCI recognize an LLM distance course?

Ans :

It doesn’t matter . . .

BCI recognition is absolutely essential when it comes to LLB degrees – since only BCI recognized LLB grads are allowed to practice as advocates in India; and this is also essential for various career options based on the LLB degree, such as Judicial Services.

However, UGC recognition is essential for LLM degrees since an LLM does not qualify a person to practice law in India. An LLM is more of a specialization / stepping stone for entering the academic field etc.

In any case, I believe that for all UGC recognized LLM courses, the Bar Council does provide inputs on the syllabus / structure etc.

Bottom line(s):

For LLB – Look for BCI recognition
For LLM – Look for UGC recognition

If you are preparing for LLM entrance exams, do check out

Q : What books should one refer to for cracking the CLAT LLM entrance exam?

Ans :

This is a very long answer, copy-pasted from my answer(s) to similar questions . . .

Solve at least two mock tests every day and after you have finished, re-attempt the ones from the previous day till you can blindly click on the right answer without thinking too much.

After all, almost 85% of the questions are repeats / variants from previous years or derived from ‘important questions’ from other similar exams.

The question poster then asked . . . Would it be possible to crack clat PG by studying only for a month?

Yes. Absolutely possible. If the paper had ‘subjective’ part, I would have had my reservations. But the advantage the CLAT LLM paper is :

(1) It is completely an objective paper

(2) There are no ‘analytical’ / ‘quants’ / ‘reasoning’ based questions

(3) A bulk of the questions emphasize more on memory & recognition skills (e.g. Which article says this . . . Which case is for what . . . What Salmond / Austin / Hart or Holmes said etc.)

(4) A significant number of questions are repeated / variations / adapted from previous exams or from other similar exams.)

So, the answer to your question is ‘Yes’.

What’s the approach?

Complete 2 (or preferably 3 or more) mock tests every day. Review the results carefully and make a note of the questions you got wrong and memorize the correct answers.

Repeat the process every day till you circle back to the first set of mock tests and just keep repeating the cycle.

In around 10 – 15 days, you will have become familiar with a bulk of the ‘important’ questions; and you will know the answer by instinct and your scores will start going up.

Most of the LLM entrance questions don’t need any explanation or reasoning . For example, look at the first 6 questions from CLAT PG listed below.

Once you know & remember the correct answer, you can answer these questions & any variations thereof.

1. If any question arises whether a Bill is a Money Bill or not, the decision given by the shall be final:

(a) Finance Minister

(b) Speaker of the Lok Sabha

(d) Prime Minister.

2. Part IX-B of the Constitution of India dealing with the ‘Co-operative Societies’ was inserted by:

(a) The Constitution (Ninety Fifth Amendment) Act, 2009

(b) The Constitution (Ninety Eighth Amendment) Act, 2012

(d) The Constitution (Ninety Seventh Amendment) Act, 2011.

3. Article 280 of the Constitution of India deals with:

(a) Finance Commission

(b) Election Commission of India

(d) Comptroller and Auditor-General.

4. Which provision of the Constitution of India deals with the representation of the Anglo-Indian Community in the House of the People?

(a) Article 331

(b) Article 332

(d) Article 330.

5. In State of Maharashtra v. Dr. Praful B. Desai, 2003 SC the Supreme Court of India held:

(a) Right to speedy trial is part and parcel of Right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution

(b) It is obligatory on the employer to compute the family pension and offer the same to the widow even without making a claim on her part

(d) Recording of evidence through Vedio- conferencing so long the accused and/or his pleader are present while recording is as per “procedure established by law” and hence valid.

6. In which of the following judgment, the scope of writ of Habeas Corpus was widened?

(a) D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal, (1998 SC)

(b) Sheela Barse v. Union of India, (1983 SC)

(d) M.C. Mehta v. Union of India, (1987 SC)

So, if the objective is to score high marks in the CLAT PG LLM, yes, one month of dedicated practice is good enough.

If you are appearing in the CLAT PG , we have published the

Q : What is the cutoff for CLAT LLM?

Ans :

There is no specific ‘cut-off’ for the CLAT LLM, but PSUs recruiting through CLAT LLM have cut-offs based on overall performance of the year . . .

Looking at last year’s results 5475 candidates appeared for the exam (CLAT PG) and the AIR 1 was at 125 marks and the AIR 5475 was at minus 4.75 marks. (CLAT has negative marking.)

Now, there are 632 PG seats through the CLAT PG and there will be around 50 PSU posts recruited through the CLAT PG. (Currently I am aware of ONGC- 15 posts, PGCIL – 6 posts, BHEL – 12 posts and a few more should get added in the next few weeks taking the number to around 50.)

Considering that each student will opt for either a LLM admission or a PSU job, scoring a rank between 1 to 700 (approx) should give an applicant a shot at a LLM seat or a PSU job. (I would have said 650, but there are usually a few last minute drop outs )

However, PSU posts are quite attractive to a number of students; so the higher the rank the better.

Though I don’t have any numbers / data – I would expect the general PSU posts to get closed within AIR 100 max. (Apart from the CLAT ranking, there will also be GD, Interview etc. for PSU posts)

Last year’s ONGC cut-offs were :

Category Cut-off Score
UR 109.25
OBC 98.75
SC 90.25
ST 91.50
PWD (VH) 81.25

Bottom-line : Aim at scoring an AIR of within 300 or higher.

If you are appearing in the CLAT PG , we have published the

Q : What are the fees of the Bar Council exam for MP students?

Ans :

There is no State-wise difference in the fee payable for the All India Bar Exam within various categories of applicants.

For all general category applicants, the fees is Rs.3650

For SC / ST candidates, there is relaxation of Rs.1000, so the fee payable is Rs. Rs. 2650

Before applying the the Bar Exam, you need to have completed your LLB degree and registered with your State Bar council as a practicing advocate.

Before starting the online registration process for the Bar Exam, keep these following documents ready.

a)\tAdvocate ID card (if issued by State Bar Council)

b)\tEnrolment Certificate (Issued by the State Bar Council)

c)\tScanned photo & signature (In JPEG format)

d)\tST/ SC Category Certificate (if applicable)

e)\tDisability certificate (if applicable)

If you are taking the Bar exam this year, do check out our

Q : Is an LLB from IGNOU or any correspondence course eligible for the SANAD from the Bar Counsil?

Ans :

No.

(1) There are no BCI & UGC recognized correspondence or part-time LLB course in India.

(2) BCI has clearly specified that only full-time LLB degree holders, who clear the AIBE, are eligible to practice as advocates in India. (applicable for all LLB grads post academic year 2009–10)

Q : What is the age restriction in CLAT exam?

Ans :

As of the academic year – 2019, there is no age limit for either the three year LLB ( where graduation is a prerequisite) or the five year LLB (+2 is minimum prerequisite).

Based on the above, there is no upper age limit for the CLAT (for LLB) / CLAT PG (for LLM).

BCI had previously notified an upper limit of 22 years for 5 year integrated LLB and 45 years for a 3 year LLB on the 1st of March 2017. (previous academic year)

On the 3rd of March 2017, the Supreme court stayed the notification and deemed the upper age limit as not applicable.

The next hearing was supposed to happen during the 3rd week of July 2017. However, there is no update on the case as of now.

Till the Supreme court gives a final decision and BCI changes the rules to implement the age limits in the future, there is no upper limit for LLB admissions.

What happens if the final decision of the Supreme court is in favour of an upper age limit?

The decision will be prospective and not retrospective.

It will not affect students who have already enrolled into any LLB course, it will affect admissions and prospective applicants from the date of the decision.

Q : How do I know about Himachal Pradesh National law university admission procedure, hostel facilities and what are all the courses offered for LLM?

Ans :

For an overview of the facilities, courses and other details, you can visit the HPNLU website.

As far the entrance exam is concerned, HPNLU has it’s own entrance exam called the HPNLET.

The pattern of the question paper for admission to the Post-Graduate Course – LLM One Year Course through the HPNLET- :

Topics :

Constitutional Law

Law of Contract

Law of Torts

Family Law

Criminal Law

Jurisprudence

Corporate Law etc.

•\t120 Multiple Choice Questions of 1 mark each.

•\tThere will be 0.25 or l/4th mark negative marking for wrong answers in the HPNLET LLM Entrance

•\tNo specific topic-wise break-up of questions is mentioned

•\tMay include some questions on Labour law. Environmental law. IPR

There will be an Essay on a ‘Contemporary Legal Issue’ for 30 marks. Total paper will be for 150 marks.

Total time for the HPNLET LLM Entrance exam (Objective questions + Essay) will be 120 minutes.

Important Dates for the HPNLET LLM :

•\tDate of Commencement of filling up online application forms – 22nd January

•\tLast Date of Application: 7th April

•\tDate of Entrance Test: 20th May .10.00 A.M. to 12.00 Noon

•\tDate of Declaration of Result 2nd June.

Q : What is the best coaching center for LLM entrance exam preparation in Delhi?

Ans :

Update : There will be a ‘subjective’ part in CLAT PG 2019. However, the crux of the answer does not change. In addition to practicing the objective questions, students should practice writing structured essay type answers. The topics covered & the format of the ‘subjective’ part will be clear when the official CLAT 2019 announcement is released.