Law as a Career Path in India

Introduction

Education law is that part of the law in a state, country or city that specifically governs educational bodies such as public and private schools and universities. Various laws of education cover every aspect of education and school systems.

On the other hand, Legal education in India generally refers to the education of lawyers before entering into practice.

Eventually, it is the education of individuals in the principles, practices, and theory of law. It may be undertaken for several reasons, including to provide knowledge and skills.

Major Law Entrance Exams in India

The top Law Colleges in India have kept the following exams as the benchmark:

1. CLAT - Common Law Admission Test.
2. LSAT - Law School Admission Test.
3. AILET - All India Law Entrance Test.
4. BVP CET - Bharathi Vidyapeeth Common Entrance Test.
5. SET - Symbiosis Entrance Test.
6. Delhi University Law Entrance Exam.
7. AMU LEE - Aligarh Muslim University Law Entrance Examination.
8. BHUET - Banaras Hindu University Entrance Exam.

CLAT - A Magic Wand for Law Aspirants

Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is the most chosen of all the law entrances in India after Class XII. CLAT is a centralized test for admission into 21 National Law Universities of India.

The test is taken after the Higher Secondary Examination or the 12th grade for admission to integrated undergraduate programmes including BA LLB, B.Com LLB, and B.Sc and after Graduation in Law for Master of Laws (LLM) programmes conducted by these law universities.

Besides this, the two-hour admission test consists of objective type questions on Elementary Mathematics or Numerical Ability, English with Comprehension, General knowledge and Current affairs, Legal Aptitude and Legal Awareness and Logical Reasoning.

LSAT – India: An alternative to CLAT

Law School Admission Test - India (LSAT - India) - It is a world level test which is essential for admission into law universities of USA, Canada and University of Melbourne, Australia. Besides this, the purpose of the LSAT is to assist in predicting student success in law school.

Likewise, the examination includes five multiple-choice question sections and an unscored writing sample. The LSAT finds out the candidates skills in critical areas of future legal work, including reading comprehension, information management, analysis, and critical thinking, reasoning, and argumentation.

Options as a Law Aspirant

Bachelor of Laws (LLB)

It is an undergraduate law course which is offered by various Indian universities. So, to pursue LLB course, Universities provide a 3 year LLB course for graduates of any stream, and a 5 year integrated LLB course for Class 12 pass-outs.

Moreover, the advantage is that those who miss other streams after Class 12 due to some reasons still have an opportunity to study law after graduation.

Masters of Laws (LLM)

LLM is an internationally-known, second-level law degree offered in many countries around the world. Moreover, LLMs are offered at the graduate level and in many countries, an LLM, or equivalent degree, is required before practicing law.

In fact, LLMs may be specialized and can be undertaken by students wishing to concentrate or develop their expertise in a particular field like tax law, international law, or human rights law. Additionally, LLMs may also be completed by a student with a law degree who wishes to pursue a legal career in another country.

Top Law Colleges in India

In the current date, some of the best Law Schools in India are:

1. National Law School of India University, Bangalore.
2. Symbiosis Society's Law College, Pune.
3. ILS Law College, Pune.
4. Faculty of Law, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi.
5. Amity Law School, Delhi.
6. Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh.
7. Bharathi Vidyapeeth Law College, Pune.
8. School of Law Christ University, Bangalore.
9. Lucknow University, Lucknow.

Prerequisites of a Law College

• It should provide students with good Communication skills, Judgmental skills, Analytical skills, Research skills as well as Creativity skills, etc.
• Access to online legal resources.
• Moot Court Hall.
• Exposure to the Judiciary and Legal Fraternity.
• Lok Adalat.
• Placements and Services.

Career Prospects

Law is very reputable and a hard-working field. A fresher may have to work under a legal firm or a lawyer at the start of his career.

Furthermore, India has a great demand for skilled lawyers as per the survey done by the Bar Council of India. Only 20% of the Indian law students are eligible to work in the court.

A law student can be a judge, public prosecutor, solicitor general or a part of private legal firms after gaining experience. Additionally, a good lawyer can work in a ministry, government departments and various legal organizations.

As a result, there is a good prospect to work in the UK and the US. The law of India is almost similar to the law of UK. The firms and UK government offer the Indian students to work with them as a legal professional.

In order of designation, you may be one out of the following:

• Criminal Lawyer
• Civil Litigation Lawyer
• Legal Analyst
• Document Drafting Lawyer
• Legal Journalist
• Legal Advisor
• Government Lawyer
• Judge

Employment Trends for Law

• The five-year LLB, particularly at the NLUs (National Law Universities) have placed their graduates in national and international law firms, corporate legal departments and consulting companies, in a much better way.
• However, the judges, academicians and law officers in the government mostly come by doing three-year LLB courses offered at university law departments and faculties.
• As a matter of fact, the important thing to keep in mind for a law aspirant is to aim for and secure admission to a top law school/ faculty to get a wholesome legal education and learning experience.

Conclusion

As a result, this professional qualification allows you to enjoy more job security and higher salary as compared to those without. In fact, Law graduates adapt very well in various situations or career transitions.

Moreover, these days the need for quality judges and lawyers is on an all-time high. The need to provide justice in today’s world where the miscreants get bailed very easily is very high. So, as a responsible citizen of India, it becomes a duty of a law enforcer to serve unbiased justice to the innocent.

The knowledge and skills gained from studying law facilitate students to analyze both sides of complex situations or problems.

Lastly, I want to say that if you want an efficient judicial system, it is imperative that more lawyers and judges are churned out by the system.