An Introduction to Law Entrance Examinations

Law entrance exams are conducted in India for those who plan to make their career in Law. Taking up a career in law is a booming sector for those who wish to explore career fields other than engineering and medicine for higher studies. Candidates have to appear for a competitive exam in order to take admission in a law school in India.

Students who qualify a law entrance exam such as CLAT, SLAT, AILET, LSAT, CUET-LLB etc can take up admission in renowned law colleges such as National Law Universities, Delhi University, Army Institute of Law, ILS Law College, Symbiosis Law Schools, etc

The interest among Indian students to pursue law courses after 12th standard has been steadily increasing. To gain admission to top law colleges in India, students must pass a law entrance exam. These exams serve as the primary entry point for law programs and are essential for those aspiring to study law.

Let’s delve into the nature, eligibility, application, syllabus and preparation strategies of these law entrance examinations.

Common Law Admission Test (CLAT 2025)

The CLAT 2025 examination will be held in OFFLINE mode The applications have to be submitted ONLINE only from www.consortiumofnlus.ac.in website. For any information relating to the 25 NLUs, the candidate may refer to the e-brochure of the respective Institutions available in the Consortium website.

The CLAT 2025 examination will be held in OFFLINE mode The applications have to be submitted ONLINE only from www.consortiumofnlus.ac.in website. For any information relating to the 25 NLUs, the candidate may refer to the e-brochure of the respective Institutions available in the Consortium website.

CLAT 2025 Application: Documents to be uploaded with the Online Application:

1. Front facing passport size recent photograph with plain background
2. Signature of the candidate
3. Category certificate if you are applying under SC/ST/OBC/ P.W.D/BPL/EWS category

Application Fee

• Application fees can be paid online only.
• Application fee for General/OBC/PWD/NRI/PIO/OCI candidates: Rs.4,000/-
• Application fee for SC/ST/BPL category candidates: Rs.3,500/-
• The cost of previous years' question papers is Rs.500/- (not included in the CLAT 2023 application fee of Rs.4,000/- or Rs.3,500/- as the case may be.)
• The candidates themselves will have to bear the bank transaction charges for remitting the fee online. The actual bank transaction charges will be displayed in the payment gateway page after candidates choose the mode of payment.
• Application Fees is non-refundable.

CLAT 2025 UG Eligibility:

• There is be no upper age limit for candidates appearing for UG Programme through the CLAT 2025.
• Candidates must secure the following minimum percentage of marks in their qualifying examination (i.e., 10+2 or an equivalent examination)
• Forty five percent (45%) marks or its equivalent grade in case of candidates belonging to General / OBC / PWD / NRI / PIO / OCI categories
• Forty Percent (40%) marks or equivalent in case of candidates belonging to SC/ST categories.
• Candidates who may be appearing for their qualifying examination in March/ April, 2023 are also eligible to appear for the CLAT examination. However, they shall be required to produce evidence of their passing the qualifying examination at the time of admission, failing which they shall lose their right to be considered for admission.
• The result of the qualifying examination (i.e., 10+2) shall be submitted by the candidate at the time of admission, failing which the candidate shall be ineligible for admission to the course they may have applied for.
• If more than one candidate secures an equal number of marks in the CLAT, the break of tie shall be by the following procedure and order as under:
  • Higher marks in the component/section on Legal Aptitude in the CLAT exam;
  • Higher age;
  • Computerised draw of lots.

CLAT 2025 UG Syllabus:

The UG-CLAT 2025 would focus on evaluating the comprehension and reasoning skills and abilities of candidates. Overall, it is designed to be a test of aptitude and skills that are necessary for a legal education rather than prior knowledge, though prior knowledge occasionally may be useful to respond to questions in the Current Affairs section. The UG-CLAT 2025 shall be a 2-hour test, with 120 multiple-choice questions carrying 1 mark each. There shall be negative marking of 0.25 marks for every wrong answer. These questions would be divided across the following 5 subjects:

1. English Language
2. Current Affairs, including General Knowledge
3. Legal Reasoning
4. Logical Reasoning
5. Quantitative Techniques

Preparation Strategy for English Language

The English language syllabus for CLAT 2025 is designed to evaluate the candidates’ proficiency in English based on their reading and comprehension skills. Here’s an overview of what to expect:

• Number of Questions: The English section will have about 22-26 multiple-choice questions.
• Marks: Each question carries one mark, with a negative marking of 0.25 for every incorrect answer.
• Passages: There will be 4-6 passages in the exam, each followed by a set of questions to test comprehension.

Syllabus Topics:

1. Reading comprehension
2. Para Summary
3. Para Jumbles & Odd One Out
4. Sentence completion and correction
5. Identifying spelling and grammatical errors
6. Understanding of Figures of Speech/Prepositions
7. Synonyms and antonyms
8. Idioms and phrases
9. Vocabulary and word meanings
10. Tenses
11. Fill in the blanks
12. Spotting active & passive voice

The English language section forms roughly 20% of the overall CLAT syllabus, emphasizing its significance in the examination.In this section, you will be provided passages of about 450 words each. These passages will be derived from contemporary or historically significant fiction and non-fiction writing, and would be of a standard that a 12th standard student may be able to read in about 5-7 minutes.Each passage will be followed by a series of questions that will require you to demonstrate your comprehension and language skills, including your abilities to:

• Read and comprehend the main point discussed in the passage, as well as any arguments and viewpoints discussed or set out in the passage;
• Draw inferences and conclusions based on the passage;
• Summarise the passage;
• Compare and contrast the different arguments or viewpoints set out in the passage;
• Understand the meaning of various words and phrases used in the passage.

Preparation Strategy for Current Affairs Including General Knowledge
The Current Affairs and General Knowledge (GK) section for the CLAT 2025 exam is designed to test the candidates’ awareness of various events and issues of significance at both the national and international levels. Here’s a brief overview of what you can expect:

• Number of Questions: The Current Affairs and GK section will contain around 28-32 questions, making up about 25% of the question paper.This section will cover a wide range of topics, including:

1. Contemporary events of significance from India and the world
2. Arts and Culture
3. International Affairs
4. Historical events of continuing significance
5. Sports
6. Economics and Government Policy
7. Books and Authors
8. Geography
9. Awards and Honors
10. National and International Events
11. Important Organizations.

The GK section is typically divided into Static GK and Dynamic GK (Current Affairs), with the latter focusing on the most recent events and developments.In this section, you will be provided passages of up to 450 words each. The passages will be derived from news, journalistic sources and other non-fiction writing. The questions may include an examination of legal information or knowledge discussed in or related to the passage, but would not require any additional knowledge of the law beyond the passage.
Each passage will be followed by a series of questions that will require you to demonstrate your awareness of various aspects of current affairs and general knowledge, including:

• Contemporary events of significance from India and the world;
• Arts and culture;
• International affairs; and
• Historical events of continuing significance.

Preparation Strategy for Legal Reasoning
The Legal Reasoning section of the CLAT 2025 exam is a crucial part of the test, designed to assess your ability to apply legal principles to factual scenarios. Here’s what you need to know about the syllabus:

• Weightage: Legal Reasoning will have a weightage of around 25% of the total marks, with approximately 28-32 questions.
• Content: The questions will be based on passages of about 450 words each. These passages will be related to legal matters, public policy questions, or moral philosophical inquiries.
• Skills Tested: This section tests your reading ability, critical thinking, and analytical skills. It evaluates how well you can understand and analyze the situations presented in the passages.
• Prior Knowledge: No prior knowledge of law is required to answer the questions. However, some familiarity with legal concepts and current legal affairs can be beneficial.

The types of questions you can expect will involve:

• Identifying and inferring the rules and principles set out in the passages.
• Applying such rules and principles to various fact situations.
• Understanding how changes to the rules or principles may alter their application to various fact situations.

To prepare for this section, it’s recommended to read widely in the field of law, stay updated with current legal affairs, and practice with sample passages and questions. In this section, you will be expected to read passages of around 450 words each. The passages may relate to fact situations or scenarios involving legal matters, public policy questions or moral philosophical enquiries. You will not require any prior knowledge of law. You will benefit from a general awareness of contemporary legal and moral issues to better apply general principles or propositions to the given fact scenarios.Each passage would be followed by a series of questions that will require you to:

• Identify and infer the rules and principles set out in the passage;
• Apply such rules and principles to various fact situations;
• Understand how changes to the rules or principles may alter their application to various fact situations.

Preparation Strategy for Logical Reasoning
The Logical Reasoning section for the CLAT 2025 exam is an essential component that evaluates your critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Here’s a summary of what you can expect in this section:

• Number of Questions: You will encounter approximately 28-32 questions related to Logical Reasoning.
• Passages: The questions will be based on short reading passages of around 300 words each.
• Skills Tested: This section aims to test your ability to understand the logic of the passages and answer questions that require you to:
• Recognize an argument’s premises and conclusions
• Critically analyze patterns of reasoning, and assess how conclusions may depend on particular premises or evidence
• Infer what follows from the passage and apply these inferences to new situations
• Draw relationships and analogies, identify contradictions and equivalence, and assess the effectiveness of arguments.

The Logical Reasoning section of the CLAT 2025 will include a series of short passages of about 300 words each. Each passage will be followed by one or more questions that will require you to:

• Recognize an argument, its premises and conclusions;
• Read and identify the arguments set out in the passage;
• Critically analyse patterns of reasoning, and assess how conclusions may depend on particular premises or evidence;
• Infer what follows from the passage and apply these inferences to new situations;
• Draw relationships and analogies, identify contradictions and equivalence, and assess the effectiveness of arguments.

Preparation Strategy for Quantitative Techniques
The Quantitative Aptitude section for the CLAT 2025 is designed to test your ability to interpret data and solve problems using mathematical concepts. Here’s an overview of what you can expect in this section:

• Understanding and Interpreting Data: You’ll encounter short sets of facts, graphs, and other forms of numerical information. Your task will be to extract relevant information and use it to answer questions.
• Mathematical Operations: The questions will require you to apply basic mathematical operations that are typically taught up to the 10th-grade level. This includes ratios, proportions, algebra, measurement, and statistics.
• Problem-Solving Skills: The section aims to evaluate your problem-solving skills within a legal context, applying mathematical concepts to real-life scenarios.

The Quantitative Techniques section is considered one of the highest-scoring areas of the CLAT exam. A thorough understanding of the syllabus and good preparation can significantly boost your overall rank.For detailed preparation, you might want to focus on the following key topics:

• Number System
• Average
• Percentage
• Ratios and Proportions
• Profit & Loss
• Simple & Compound Interest
• Basic Algebra
• Mensuration
• Statistical Analysis

Remember, the syllabus may include data presented in various forms such as graphs, charts, and diagrams, followed by questions that require mathematical operations based on the information provided. The Quantitative Techniques section of the CLAT 2025 will include short sets of facts or propositions, graphs, or other textual, pictorial or diagrammatic representations of numerical information, followed by a series of questions. You will be required to derive information from such passages, graphs, or other representations, and apply mathematical operations on such information.The questions will require you to:

• Derive, infer, and manipulate numerical information set out in such passages, graphs, or other representations;
• Apply various 10th standard mathematical operations on such information, including from areas such as ratios and proportions, basic algebra, mensuration and statistical estimation.