Q : Can I apply for a course in Campus of Open Learning while doing a regular course in DU?
Ans :
Yes you can.
The programs offered by the DU Campus of Open Learning tend to be anywhere between 1.5 months to 6 months.
Students of all colleges or Departments of DU are eligible to apply for these courses.
Classes are held in the COL campus in Keshav Puram.
Note: While there is no issue with COL, you just need to ensure that there are no issues with your current that you can juggle both the courses in terms of attendance, time required for assignments etc.
Q : How can I become a lawyer with a B.Com degree?
Ans :
Yes. You can become a lawyer ‘starting’ with a B Com degree.
You will next have to complete your LLB degree to become a Lawyer in India.
The LLB course in India is basically a ‘higher degree’ program, which means that you have to have a Bachelors degree to enroll for the LLB course.
For a 3 year LLB program, you need to have a BA / BCom / BBA / BSc or any other UGC recognized bachelors degree.
Depending on the college and the University, you need to have a minimum cut-off marks to enroll for the LLB (Just passing your Bachelors degree will not suffice).
There is also the 5 year integrated dual-degree LLB program, in which students typically enroll after their 10+2 (Class 12 or PUC) – this five year program leads to a BCom + LLB or BBA + LLB etc.
To become a practicing Advocate in India, you need to follow the steps below:
- Complete your LLB (3 year or 5 year does not matter)
- Enroll with State Bar Council (SBC) as a practicing advocate
- Start practicing as an Advocate
- Apply for the AIBE – All India Bar Exam with the SBC enrollment details
- Pass the AIBE within two years of enrollment with SBC
- If you don’t pass, you must cease practice as a Advocate and recommence only after you pass the AIBE
Q : Can I do a (regular) BA LLB at AMU and a distance BA at IGNOU together?
Ans :
My Answer : Yes you can.
My Question : Why would you want to do that ?
Let me explain.
As others have clarified in their answers, you can technically take up a full time BA LLB and a distance BA from IGNOU at the same time.
But you will anyways be getting a BA degree + a LLB degree from your full time BA LLB course. I do not see any incremental value addition of having another BA degree.
Also, in the Indian context, a ‘full time’ degree is deemed to have more weight than a ‘correspondence’ or a distance degree.
On the other hand, if the situation is that you have already enrolled into a correspondence BA from IGNOU and now you have secured an admission into a full-time BA LLB course; and you are wondering if you should drop the IGNOU BA, especially since you have completed part of the course, paid the fees etc. – There is no harm in completing both in parallel – as long as you can balance the time required for pursuing both the courses.
Remember, you will have plenty to study in your full-time BA LLB program and your academic performance here will have more weight than in your distance BA from IGNOU.
Your career and higher education prospects will depend more on your full-time program, so prioritize that first. If you still have the time and inclination – pursue the other program also.
Q : Do I need to get degrees in law from various countries in order to be an international lawyer?
Ans :
No you don’t.
First let us define the concept of ‘International Lawyer’ – A Lawyer who deals with clients from different countries or represents the interests of a client in different countries can be referred to as an ‘International lawyer’.
Now there are two main roles that the Lawyer plays in the various countries he / she operates in.
- Legal Advisory role – Advise on all legal aspects, but not actually undertake legal administrative activities – such as sending or responding to Legal notices and representing clients in the Courts of law.
- Legal Representative role – Where the Lawyer takes up legal activities including sending and responding to notices, representing the clients and attending Courts of Law on the clients behalf.
Most countries have pre-qualifications, specifications and restrictions on who can be a practicing Lawyer.
Therefore, “International Lawyers” typically do not necessarily have qualifications from multiple countries, but they do have extensive knowledge of the Law in the countries they are operating in.
For local Legal Representative roles outside their base country, they have a tie-up with a local Lawyer or Law firm.
If you do wish to have qualifications in multiple countries, you should check on the requirements of the Country’s Bar Council.
They typically have a reciprocal recognition of Law degrees from different countries; and will require a Lawyer from another country to pass a qualifying exam before being allowed to practice in that country.
However, you will also need to factor-in any Citizen ship restrictions that a country might have to enrol as a Lawyer.
For example, Bar Council of India rules say “A degree in law from a foreign University, obtained by an Indian national or a person of Indian Origin having double citizenship in India who has completed 21 years of age, can be recognized for the purpose of enrolment as an advocate if the following conditions are fulfilled.”
This link leads to the list of Foreign Law Degrees recognized by the Bar Council of India:
Q : Can I work in litigation if I pursue BBA LLB?
Ans :
Yes. You can work in litigation after BBA LLB
I am answering this question from an Indian context.
To become a practicing Advocate in India, you need to follow the steps below:
- Complete your LLB (3 year or 5 year does not matter)
- Enroll with State Bar Council (SBC) as a practicing advocate
- Start practicing as an Advocate
- Apply for the AIBE – All India Bar Exam with the SBC enrollment details
- Pass the AIBE within two years of enrollment with SBC
- If you don’t pass, you must cease practice as a Advocate and recommence only after you pass the AIBE
So the short answer will be – Yes, after finishing your BBA LLB, you can enroll with the State Bar Council and start practicing as an Advocate in India.
Q : Can I work in litigation if I pursue BBA LLB?
Ans :
Yes you can – at least for two years.
I am answering this question from an Indian context.
To become a practicing Advocate in India, you need to follow the steps below:
- Complete your LLB
- Enroll with State Bar Council (SBC) as a practicing advocate
- Apply for the AIBE – All India Bar Exam with the SBC enrollment details
- Pass the AIBE within two years of enrollment with SBC
- If not, you must cease practice as a Advocate and recommence only after you pass the AIBE
So, after finishing your BBA LLB, you can enroll with the State Bar Council and start practicing as an Advocate in India.
You will have a two year window to clear the AIBE.
If you don’t pass the AIBE in the two year window, you will have to stop practicing as an advocate till you pass the exam.
Edit : To clarify on the answer above, you need to pass the AIBE – All India Bar Exam only if you intend to practice as an advocate. i.e. represent clients and appear on their behalf in the Court.
However, if you are pursuing a corporate career, you need not pass the AIBE.
But, considering that the AIBE is based on the standard LLB syllabus (with some changes), it is highly recommended that students should clear the AIBE at the earliest, even if they don’t intend to practice for now.
It is preferably to clear the exam when you are still fresh with your LLB subjects and have access to all your text books etc.
Q : Which is better a BBA or BBA LLB?
Ans :
Let us look at the question from a time point of view.
- BBA degree is a 3 year program
- LLB degree is a 3 year program
So if you complete your BBA and then take take up LLB, you will have spent 6 years to obtain your LLB.
An integrated dual-degree 5 year LLB program will give you a BCom / BBA / BA + LLB – so you save one year.
Let us look at the question from a career plan point of view.
If your aspiration is to ultimately pursue a law degree, it makes sense to enroll in a integrated BBA LLB program.
But remember :
– It is a five year commitment
– Depending on the College / University rules, you may not get even a BBA degree if you decide to opt out anytime midway.
If you are not sure of your long term career plans, you can complete your BBA and then decide on a MBA / LLB at a later date.
Let us look at the question from an employment prospects point of view
If you intend to pursue a BBA + LLB integrated five year course, the National Law Schools (National Law Universities) score above regular Universities in terms of campus placements and corporate career opportunities.
The best law firms from across India come to recruit from the NLU campuses; whereas graduates from other Universities will not have the same advantage.
A 5 year LLB graduate from a regular University will be treated by recruiters as on par with a 3 year LLB graduate from same / similar Universities.
[* Some University Law Colleges do have campus placements, but they typically do not attract the Tier-1 law firms]
Bottom-line : The BBA or BBA + LLB decision really depends on your long term career aspirations and personal preference.
BBA+LLB saves you one year, but it requires a five year commitment.
Completing a BBA first will give you an opportunity to choose between MBA / LLB / taking up employment after graduation.
If BBA+LLB is your decision, aim for the National Law Schools and the Top colleges in India to get the maximum ROI from your degree from an employment perspective.
If independent practice is your goal, it doesn’t matter where and how you complete your LLB. You PR management, contacts and business development skills will be the key to success.
Q : Is there any distance program for an LLB from a UGC-approved university?
Ans :
The answer is No.
LLB in India is governed by the BCI (Bar Council of India).
To enroll as a practicing Lawyer in India, a candidate needs to have completed a BCI recognized Indian LLB or an equivalent Foreign law degree – and also fulfill other mandatory requirements & qualifying exams.
Currently BCI does not recognize any LLB qualification offered via correspondence or distance education modes.
BCI’s Rules of Legal Education Chapter I, Sec 2, (iv) (a) states that a Department or College or Institution conducting correspondence courses through distance education shall not be included in the definition of “Centers for legal education”
So there is no ‘distance’ program for an LLB from a UGC approved university.
Q : Should I join an LLB after completing an MBA in India?
Ans :
From a procedural point of view, you definitely can join LLB :
- As of now (Aug 2017) , there is no upper age limit for a 3 year or 5 year LLB course. (BCI’s previous notification implementing an age limit has been stayed by the court.)
- If you have completed your graduation (10+2+3 or 10+2+4), with the minimum marks required (Depends on the University) – you can enroll for a LLB course in any college.
From a career point of view :
If you are willing to invest the time, effort and money in completing the LLB degree, it is a good qualification to acquire.
With increasing globalization and the complexities of business and life, the opportunities for Law professionals are growing significantly across all sectors. So an MBA + LLB would be a good academic qualification.
An LLB degree also allows you to start practicing as an independent Lawyer at any time in the future – even after you resign or retire from corporate life (You have to pass the AIBE though)
Summary: While from a procedure point of view, you can take up LLB after MBA, the decision will depend on what you wish to achieve with the LLB.
There is a shortage of high quality Law professionals in India, so there will always be opportunities.
But remember, as a fresh Law graduate, you will be essentially starting off in a new field, with zero experience (unless you can somehow leverage on your past experience and show it as relevant).
** The upper age limit may be changed in the future depending on the Legal Education committee decisions and basis the outcome of the petitions filed regarding the age limit.
Q : Is a public sector bank employee who have completed LL.B eligible to apply for All India Bar Exam?
Ans :
I seem to be answering most questions today with a ‘Yes and No’, let me change gears here and start with a ‘No and Yes’ 🙂
To take up the All India Bar Exam, you need to :
- Have completed your LLB degree during or after the academic year 2009–10
- You need to register with the state Bar Council as a ‘Practicing Advocate’
- You need to apply for the AIBE – All India Bar Exam with the details of your state Bar council enrollment.
- Pass the AIBE within two years after enrolling with the Bar Council, else you need to stop practicing till you pass the AIBE.
Now, coming to your question, the ‘No’ is because:
If you have completed your LLB anytime before the academic year 2009–10, you need not and cannot take the AIBE.
Whenever you wish to practice as a Lawyer, you can just enroll with your state Bar Council as a ‘Practicing Advocate’ and become an advocate.
If you have completed your LLB during or after the academic year 2009–10, you need to pass the AIBE if you wish to practice as a Lawyer (Advocate) for more than 2 years.
But for registering as a ‘Practicing Lawyer’, you should not be an ‘Employee’ in the private or public sector.
So, you cannot register as a ‘Practicing Lawyer’ while you are working with the Public Sector; and by extension, you cannot take the AIBE without registering.
What is the way forward? and why the ‘Yes’?
To play by the rules, whenever you wish to practice as a full time Lawyer, I assume that you will be resigning / retiring from your current employment.
You can register with your state Bar council at that time and take the AIBE as soon as possible. You will anyways have 2 years to pass it. Else you will have to pause your practice till you pass the Bar Exam.
As such, the AIBE does not give you any advantage / disadvantage if you are an employee or if you are pursuing any other business.
The AIBE is just the ‘Qualifying’ exam for practicing as a Lawyer in India and can be taken at any time. – There is no age limit and no restriction on number of attempts as of now.
Note: There might be another option, where you take a ‘sabbatical’ unpaid leave from your organization and enroll as a ‘Practicing lawyer’ and follow the AIBE process.
But this would depend on the leave policy applicable to your organization, whether your State Bar Council allows you to register as a ‘Practicing Lawyer’ during the period of your unpaid sabbatical leave.
You should talk to your state Bar council officials to clarify.
If you are taking the Bar exam this year, do check out our
Q : If I only have an LL.M and no LL.B, can I still apply for the bar?
Ans :
Which country and state are you referring to ? – in the context of your question.
The correct answer will completely depend on your answer to the above question.
For example:
- In India, you have to have a LLB degree to be eligible to apply for the Bar / Bar exam. Having an LLM alone will not suffice.
- In Japan, you need not have a basic qualification in Law to take up the Bar exam.
- In the US, most states require you to have a recognized Law Degree for taking up the Bar Exam; but a few states allow something called ‘Reading the law’Quoting from Wikipedia “A small number of jurisdictions still permit this. In the states of California,Vermont,Virginia and Washington, an applicant who has not attended law school may take the bar exam after reading law under a judge or practicing attorney for an extended period of time.The required time varies. Exact rules vary as well; for example, Virginia doesn’t allow the reader to be gainfully employed by the tutoring lawyer, while Washington requires just that.The State of New York requires that applicants who are reading law must have at least one year of law school study and Maine requires applicants to have completed at least two-thirds of a law degree.Such persons are sometimes called country lawyers or county-seat lawyers.In 2013, 60 people became lawyers this way as opposed to 84,000 via law schools.”
So, if you specify the country and the state in the context of your question, you will get an accurate answer.
Q : Is it possible to get LLM after LLB distance education?
Ans :
Yes and No 🙂
If you have already completed your LLB, even if it is through a distance education course offered previously, you can get a LLM degree through a full-time or part time courses.
Currently, there are no Bar Council of India (BCI) recognized Distance Education LLB courses in India.
A few years ago, there were some colleges offering part-time or distance LLB courses, which were recognized by the UGC and the BCI. But they have all been stopped now.
On several occasions the BCI has clarified that all LLB courses in India need to be full-time only.
The rational given is that the minimum standards required for an LLB course are not met by a distance education or part-time course. And the fact that there are also components like ‘practical courses’, ‘moot court’, ‘mandatory court visits’ etc. necessitate the need for a full-time course.
LLM is a specialization degree which is available as full-time or distance education and most of them are recognized by the UGC.
To summarize :
(1) If you already have a UGC – BCI recognized LLB degree (Full time or Distance), you can take up LLM full time or via distance education.
(2) If you are currently planning to take up an LLB course, all LLB courses in India – BCI & UGC recognized – are full time courses only.
Bottom-lines :
(1) Currently, all LLB courses in India are full-time.
(2) LLM courses on the other hand are offered as full-time or distance education modes.
Q : Where will I get the All India maths answer key and when?
Ans :
Yes and No.
Let me explain:
Yes, because students are allowed to carry out the AIBE question papers after the exam, the old question papers and ‘unofficial’ answer keys are available.
No, because BCI is not releasing the ‘official’ Answer key for the exam. Students can file a request for rechecking of their answer sheets and visit the BCI office in New Delhi to personally see their Answer sheets post revaluation.
As we had mentioned in an article on the same topic on our website, BCI has clearly stated that “Under no circumstances will the Xerox of answer sheet and answer key be given to the candidate.”
Note: Please do be careful while relying on the Unofficial answer keys available on several websites. We found that many of them were not accurate.
Q : Can you sit for All India Bar Exam if you don’t have a law degree?
Ans :
No. You have to complete a LLB degree recognized by the Bar Council of India to register for the AIBE – All India Bar Examination.
In India, an LLB degree is a 3 year course or a 5 year course.
A student who has at least completed a basic graduation* (BA/BSc/BCom/BBA etc.) can enroll for a 3 year LLB course.
A student who has completed 10+2 years of education* (Class 12 or PUC) can enroll for a 5 year LLB, which is a integrated course – students will get a BA LLB, BBA LLB, BCom LLB etc.
To practice as an independent lawyer after completing LLB, a student has to register with the respective state Bar Council and pass the AIBE within two years.
There is a ‘grace period’ of two years from the date of enrollment with the Bar Council, during which a LLB graduate can practice as a Advocate (i.e. represent clients in a Court of law)
If the student is unable to clear the AIBE, he/she has to stop practicing as a lawyer (at the end of 2 years from State Bar council enrollment date) and can recommence practice only after clearing the AIBE.
However, there is no restriction on a LLB graduate for pursuing higher education (LLM / MBA etc.) or taking up employment on the basis of the LLB or even starting any other business.
In simple steps, if you wish to practice as a Advocate / Lawyer 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 – continue to attempt AIBE and clear it.
(6) Resume practice as a lawyer.
If you don’t intend to practice and you are involved in any other business or in full time employment, you can skip the AIBE.
But we strongly recommend all students to clear the AIBE at the earliest possible, since it is mandatory whenever you wish to practice; and it is simpler to clear the exam when you are still fresh with your LLB subjects.
Note: At this time, there is no restriction in terms of number of attempts or any age limit for taking up the AIBE.
