How to become a lawyer in India after 12th: CLAT and other routes

There are two main routes, and CLAT is the most famous but not the only one. Route 1: 5-year integrated law (after Class 12) - BA LLB, BBA LLB, B.Com LLB or B.Sc LLB. - CLAT (Common Law Admission Test, run by the Consortium of National Law Universities) is used by most NLUs. It tests English, current affairs and general knowledge, legal reasoning, logical reasoning and quantitative techniques. - AILET for NLU Delhi, plus university exams like those of Symbiosis (SLAT) and others. Many state and private universities also admit through their own tests or marks. - Any stream can apply. Route 2: 3-year LLB (after graduation) Graduate in any subject, then do LLB through entrance routes such as CUET-PG (used by Delhi University for LLB) or other universities' own tests. After your degree - To practise in courts, you enrol with a State Bar Council and pass the All India Bar Examination (AIBE) run by the Bar Council of India. - Paths: litigation, corporate law firms, in-house legal teams, judiciary (state judicial services exams), legal policy, and academia. What makes a good lawyer? Reading a lot, clear writing and speaking, logical thinking, and patience. Litigation in particular can start slowly before it pays well. Preparation tip for CLAT: read editorials daily and practise passage-based questions, since the exam is comprehension-heavy. To see whether your verbal reasoning and personality fit law, check your Lawyer fit in Guidopia's Career DNA.