What Qualifications do you need to have to be a Lawyer?
If fighting for what right triggers your mental agility, then a career as a lawyer will prove to be a holistic choice for your professional life. There are many divisions in which you can work as a lawyer, which are criminal, civil, corporate, or intellectual property law. Legal profession is good career path.
Do you remember that our Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, by background was lawyer?
Law was a celebrated profession in those days, and even today, it has not lost an inch of its glory. To become a lawyer in India, you need to pursue either 3-years LLB course or 5-years integrated LLB course.
Five year LLB course
You can opt for a five-year LLB graduation course after completing 10+2. There are many universities that offer the five-year LLB degree, where you get admission based on your performance in the entrance test CLAT (Common Law Admission Test). CLAT results are accepted by 14 National Law Universities across India. You need to have at least 45 percent marks in 10+2 to sit for CLAT.
Universities that accept CLAT result:
1. NUSRL, Ranchi
2. NLUO, Odisha
3. NLUJA, Assam
4. RGNUL, Patiala
5. CNLU, Patna
6. GNLU, Gandhinagar
7. NUALS, Kochi
8. NLSIU, Bangalore
9. NLIU, Bhopal
10. NALSAR, Hyderabad
11. WBNUJS, Kolkata
12. HNLU, Raipur
13. NLU, Jodhpur
14. RMLNLU, Lucknow
Three year LLB course
The three year LLB course is for graduate students, who want to pursue a law degree to become a lawyer. You need to have at least 50 percent marks in your graduation to study the three year LLB course.
Some of the reputed universities that provide the three year law degree course are:
1. Delhi University
2. Banaras Hindu University
3. Government Law College, Mumbai
4. ILS Law College
5. Punjab University
Apart from CLAT, other law colleges such as ICFAI Law School, Hyderabad; Jindal Global Law School, Sonipat; School of Law, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun; IFIM Law College, Bangalore; School of Law, GITAM University, Vishakhapatnam; Alliance Law School, Bangalore; allow students to study law based on the performance in Law School Admission Test – India (LSAT – India).
Also, there are separate entrance examinations conducted by individual institutes to grant admission to students, who want to pursue law degree. Like NLU, Delhi conducts All India Law Entrance Test (AILET).
Generally, all the National Law Schools follow a semester based curriculum, except NLSIU, Bangalore, which follows a unique trimester system. Overall, there are 10 semesters in the 5-year LLB course.
Subjects
In the 3-year LLB course, you will study subjects such as Jurisprudence, Criminal Law, Business Laws, and Intellectual Property Laws. While in the 5-year course, subjects depend on the course type i.e. whether you are studying B.A LLB or BBA LLB.
Industry Exposure
The fact is Indian Legal Education system is ardently theoretical. However, most universities give little hands-on training to the students to make them understand how the legal world works in reality.
Internship is mandatory in the LLB curriculum. For this reason, students get a chance to interact with the practicing successful lawyers.
Registration with State bar council
After you complete studying law, you need to enroll yourself as an advocate in any state bar councils that fall under the Advocates Act 1961. Following the registration process, you will be required to give All India Bar Examination (AIBE), which is conducted by Bar Council of India. Once you clear this exam, you will receive a certificate to practice law.