Law, as you may all know, is a promising and highly sought after career choice across the globe; from science to commerce to arts, students from all walks of life want to pursue a legal career. The competition is high, the opportunities are plenty and with the right preparation my child you can excel in today’s competitive legal market.
What we are about to cover in this article is – how to go pursue a career in law, the Top Law Institutes in India, Eligibility Criteria, a list of some of the Top Law Firms in India, options for Law graduates! So here you go:
Educational Requirement
Students who know Law is their calling as early as high school can do a 5-year undergraduate course straight out of school. Qualification required for this is 10 + 2 with a minimum of 50% marks. Another prerequisite is that the candidate should not be more than 20 years in age.
For those who want to pursue a career in law after graduation also have a chance to make it in this career field. Students who decide to pursue law after their graduation can opt for the 3-year LL.B. course. Qualification required for this is a Bachelor’s degree with at least 50% marks in graduation.
Upon completing the undergraduate course, one can choose their field of specialization in LL.M. a 2-year full-time PG course. Qualification required for this is a minimum of 55% marks in LL.B.
Top Law Institutes in India:
There are a number of law institutes in India to pursue a career in law. Following are some of them :
| Name of Institutes | Entrance Exams | Courses | Seats |
| National Law School of India University, Bangalore | CLAT | B.A. LL.B. (H) | LL.M. | UG 80PG 50 |
| National Academy of Legal Studies And Research (NALSAR) University of Law, Andhra Pradesh | CLAT | B.A. LL.B. (H) | LL.M. | UG 80PG 60 |
| Faculty of Law, Delhi University | D.U LL.B | LL.B. | LL.M. | UG 2310PG 100 |
| Symbiosis Law School, Pune | SET | B.A LL.B. (H) | B.B.A LL.B. (H) | LL.M*(*started 2014*onward) | UG 300PG 60 |
| Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar | CLAT | B.A/B.Com/B.B.A/B.Sc/BSW LL.B. (H) | UG 180PG 40 |
| National Law Institute University (NLIU), Bhopal | CLAT | B.A LL.B. (H) | LL.M. | UG 120PG 47 |
| Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University | Entrance Test | B.A LL.B. (H) | UG 100 |
| ILS Law College, Pune | Academic Cutoff | B.A. LL.B. (H) | LL.B. | LL.M. | UG 400PG 60 |
| National Law Institute University, Jodhpur | CLAT | B.B.A LL.B.(H) | B.A LL.B (H) | B.Sc. LL.B (H) | UG 115PG 100 |
| Law School, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi | Entrance Test | LL.B. (H) | LL.M | UG 384PG 53 |
| Amity Law School, Delhi | CET | B.A L.L.B (H) | LL.M | UG 80 |
| Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL), Punjab | CLAT | B.B.A. LL.B.(H) | LL.M | UG 120PG 40 |
| Government Law College, Mumbai | Academic Cutoff | LL.B | B.L.S. LL.B | UG 560 |
| University College of Law, Osmania University, Hyderabad | Law CET | LL.B. | B.A. LL.B | LL.M | UG 120 |
| The WB National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS), Kolkata | CLAT | B.A/B.Sc LL.B. | LL.M. | UG 125PG 42 |
| Bangalore Institute of Legal Studies | Academic Cutoff | B.A. LL.B | UG 60 |
| School of Law, Christ University, Bangalore | Entrance Test | B.A. LL.B (H) | B.B.A. LL.B (H) | LL.M | UG 300 |
| Faculty of Law, University of Allahabad | Entrance Test | B.A LL.B | LL.B | LL.M | UG 616 |
| Faculty of Law, Jamia Milla Islamia, Delhi | Entrance Test | B.A LL.B | LL.M | UG 80PG 20 |
| Army Institute of Law, Mohali | Entrance Test | B.A LL.B | UG 80 |
Entrance Exams:
In order to pursue a career in law, you need to apply for and qualify entrance exams for the law. The entrance exams for LL.B courses are similar to any other professional course. The exam tests students on General Knowledge, English, Numerical Ability, Logical reasoning, and Legal Aptitude. Some of the commonly held entrance exams:
| Entrance Exam | Participating Law Schools | Seats | Exam Type | Availability of Application Forms |
| CLAT | 14 NLUs | UG 1660PG 491 | National | January |
| LSAT | more than 60 Law Colleges in India | International | November | |
| AILET | For admission to NLU (Delhi exclusively) | UG 80PG 20 | National | January |
| SET | Symbiosis University | UG 480PG 60 | National | February |
Top Legal Firms:
Some of the top Law firms in India:
- Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A. Shroff & Co. AZB & Partners
- Khaitan & Co
- J Sagar Associates (JSA)
- Luthra & Luthra
- Trilegal
- Nishith Desai Associates
- Lakshmi Kumaran & Sridharan
- S & R Associates
- Talwar Thakore & Associates
- Platinum Partners
- Desai & Diwanji
- Kochhar & Co
- Finsec Law Advisors
- Phoenix Legal
Law as a Career
Law students are not limited to practicing as an advocate in a courtroom; legal studies offer a gamut of options to choose from, some are given below:
- Legal Analyst
- Document drafting Lawyer
- Legal Journalist
- Legal Advisor
- Solicitor General
- Law School Professor
- Working with an NGO
The good news is, the scope for a legal practitioner in India has grown tremendously in the past few years as India has opened its gates to many overseas law firms. Legal Process Outsourcing better known as LPO has started to recruit young law graduates for their processes dealing in US laws or UK laws.