Last Updated By Yash Dhamija on 02 Apr, 2024
You must be wondering how to become a lawyer in India. The qualification of a lawyer not only depends on their studies but also depends on the experience that they have gained during the coursework. They utilise their legal knowledge to help clients understand and navigate legal matters. Lawyers are approved by the state to represent and advise clients in court-related legal problems. In India, a lawyer provides legal advice to individuals, local and federal governments, businesses, and anybody else in need of assistance with legal issues.
One of the most desired jobs in India is one involving the practice of law. People choose to become lawyers for a variety of reasons such as financial profit. In the thought of how to become a lawyer, aspirants should also keep in mind why they want to become a lawyer.
A lawyer works in a court, gives advice and represents their clients. They have to talk to their clients, judges, coworkers and others and analyse research on legal issues. Lawyers advise their clients on their legal rights and obligations and offer strategies for action in both professional and private concerns. Those working as a lawyer present information to customers or others in writing and vocally, and make an argument in their favour. Lawyers, sometimes known as attorneys, serve as both counsellors and advocates. As advocates, they present evidence and make arguments on behalf of one of the parties in a criminal or civil trial.
If you want to pursue a career in law but wondering how to become a lawyer in India, you must pursue a law course. You need to first get a law degree from a recognized university to become a lawyer. Not only do you have to appear for entrance exams to get into a good college to get your UG law course but after getting your degree, you also have to clear the AIBE (All India Bar Exam) exam in order to practise law in India. However, an LL.M degree is not mandatory for the qualification of a lawyer or to appear for the AIBE exam.
The law courses that you can choose from are:
The entrance exams are important to study undergraduate law courses. If you are curious to know how to become a lawyer in India, then you should have an idea of the exams that are mandatory to get a law degree.
The law exams in India are CLAT (Common Law Admission Test), AILET (All India Law Entrance Test), LSAT (Law School Admission Test), TS LAWCET, TS PGLCET, MH CET Law, CULEE (Christ University Law Entrance Exam), AP LAWCET, AP PGLCET, UPES Law Studies Aptitude Test (ULSAT), Kerala LL.B Entrance Exam (KLEE), BVP CET LAW, Army Institute of Law Entrance Test (AIL LET), KIITEE (Law), etc.
If you are thinking about how to become a lawyer, then you should possess some skill sets apart from completing your law courses.
Communication Skills: Lawyers need to be able to communicate clearly both vocally and in writing, but they also need to be effective listeners. In a court case, a lawyer's job is to make a compelling case in front of the jury and judges, so speaking well in front of an audience is crucial.
Analytical Skills: To study a case, lawyers have to sit down with a lot of material. Therefore, in order to determine which is more applicable or appropriate, a lawyer needs to have excellent evaluating skills.
Strong decision-making and Judgment Skills: For those pursuing a career as a lawyer, there will be numerous critical judgment decisions to make and little time to decide whether they are correct or wrong.
Resilience: A lawyer must possess the endurance to see a matter through to a successful conclusion when working on one.
Interpersonal Skills: A lawyer works with people and on behalf of people, and the choices they make have an impact on people's lives. If you are wondering how to become a lawyer in India, then you should be presentable and able to read people.
Creative Strength: The most effective lawyers are not only rational and analytical but also very creative when it comes to solving problems.
Those thinking about how to become a lawyer in India after 12th need to pursue Undergraduate Law courses such as BA LL.B, BBA LL.B or B.Sc LL.B. Before enrolling for these courses aspirants have to clear law entrance exams. Almost all top-tier law colleges enrol students who have scored the highest marks in these entrance exams. The job role of a lawyer will depend on the coursework and the internships that they have done.
Wondering how to become a lawyer in India after 12th? Aspirants can only do 5-year integrated law courses after completing their Class 12th. The exams that you can take after the 12th to become a lawyer are CLAT, LSAT, AILET, SET, TS LAWCET, AP LAWCET, MH CET Law, etc.
The salary of a lawyer will however increase when you have the relevant skills and the internships that you do while completing your law course. A person should have the relevant skills if they are wondering to become a lawyer.
People often wonder how to become a lawyer in India after they have completed their graduation. The LL.B course can only be taken if you have completed your graduation course. You can even become a lawyer with your integrated law degree after you have taken the law exam. The age restriction set by the BCI (Bar Council of India) is 45.
Those thinking about how to become a lawyer in India after graduation needs to appear for entrance exams to study the 3-year LL.B course. Calcutta University Entrance Exam, PU UGLAW, RULET, PU UGLAW, AILET (All India Law Entrance Test), LSAT (Law School Admission Test), Symbiosis Law Admission Test (SLAT) and All India Bar Exam (AIBE).
If you're interested in finding out how to become a lawyer, you should have some skill sets in addition to the necessary degrees pertaining to law. By participating in events like mooting, students can quickly improve their written and speaking skills during the school period while pursuing graduation.
If you want to know how to become a lawyer in India, then let us tell you that a law degree is a must to start your legal career. The law degree must be completed from a recognized institution accepted by the Bar Council of India (BCI). People can start their legal career after completing their graduation or can go for higher studies such as getting a PG degree.
The educational qualification of a lawyer plays an important part in building the legal career of an individual. When you decide to become a lawyer, the important question that comes to your mind is how to become a lawyer.
If you are wondering how to become a lawyer in India, you must get some experience apart from educational qualifications. There are certain legal divisions of corporations, governmental organizations and law firms that offer part-time employment or summer internships to help get experience. Often students are hired as summer associates in governmental bodies, some smaller firms, etc after their first year of law school. On the other hand, students who have finished their second year are only eligible for the summer associate programmes offered by several major firms. All of these opportunities can assist law students in determining the area of law they wish to specialize in after graduation and may result in employment.
While studying law, students can choose their specialisation so that they can select their type of law career. After Class 12th, aspirants often wonder how to become a lawyer in India and what are the different types of lawyers. A lawyer conducts various responsibilities such as prosecuting in court, defending in court, contracts, real state transactions and research. The salary of a lawyer also depends on the type of lawyer they become.
Patent lawyers analyse whether an invention, design or trademark is eligible for a patent or not. These lawyers guide and recommend individual private inventors as well as corporations that are waiting to get a patent. Once the patent is obtained, these lawyers protect patents in case of violation.
If you are wondering how to become a lawyer in the criminal field, then let us tell you that you need to specialise in the field. As Criminal lawyers, you have to defend your client, companies and organisations that face criminal charges. They need to investigate the case, cross-examine the witness and plan a strategy for the case.
With the qualification of a lawyer, you can become a Corporate Lawyer. Although lawyers have to go through extensive schooling, the work of a Corporate lawyer can be exciting and start an extensive career path.
Such lawyers represent a company or an individual in tax-related disputes. The salary of a lawyer working as a Tax lawyer is good if they provide private service and will be involved in client meetings, advising on potential tax liability like buying and selling assets.
Family Lawyers have to work in a broad field. They may have to deal with custody, adoption and divorce matters. However, lawyers working as Corporate lawyers specialise in one particular area.
If you are curious to find out how to become a lawyer in India, here are some courses that you can opt for to kickstart your career.
Course Name | Total Fee (Approx.) |
Integrated LL.B (5 Years) | INR 30,000 to 3,00,000 per annum |
INR 22,000 to 2,50,000 per annum | |
INR 50,000 to 5,00,000 per annum | |
Certificate in Law and Medicine | INR 1500 to 20,000 per annum |
Certificate in Legislative Drafting | INR 1200 to 9000 per annum |
Certificate in International Humanitarian Law | INR 2,700 to 10,000 per annum |
Certificate in Human Rights | INR 1000 to 9000 per annum |
Certificate in Anti-Human Trafficking | INR 1,400 to 8,000 per annum |
Certificate in Social Work and Criminal Justice System | INR 4000 to 10,000 per annum |
If you are thinking about how to become a lawyer in India, you should understand that choosing the right college will enhance your legal career.
Symbiosis Law School, Symbiosis International, Pune | Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), Lucknow |
Indian Law Institute - ILI | Army Institute of Law |
Apex School of Law | Lloyd Law College, Greater Noida |
Shoolini Institute of Law | Indore Institute of Law, Indore |
M.S. Ramaiah College of Law | K.L.E. Society’s Law College, Bangalore |
The salary of a judge sometimes depends on the universities from where they have graduated. Now, if you are wondering how to become a lawyer in India, you should know the top universities providing law courses.
NLSIU, Bangalore | NALSAR, Hyderabad |
SOA University - Siksha 'O' Anusandhan | Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), Lucknow |
School of Law, Christ University | Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University |
When you attain the necessary education qualification to become a lawyer, there are a variety of Lawyer job profiles that you can target the basis of your interest areas and legal acumen. Following are some of the job profiles for lawyers and advocates that you can opt for.
Mediators, Arbitrators or Conciliators - They solve disputes between the parties while negotiating outside the court system.
Legal Assistants and/or Paralegals - They assist lawyers in maintaining files, conducting research, working on the case etc.
Lawyers - Lawyers ideally defend their clients in the courtrooms. Apart from that, they also work as guest lecturers, assist in corporate affairs etc.
Judge / Hearing Officers - They are the decision-makers in a dispute. They conduct pre-trial hearings, assess the evidence presented, interpret the law and roll out unbiased and fair judgements.
Family Lawyers - They advise the clients on legal issues pertaining to child custody, divorce, domestic violence, adoption proceedings etc.
Securities Lawyers - They advise the clients or corporations to adhere to laws relating to buying and selling stocks while ensuring that disclosure requirements are met.
Environmental Lawyers - They deal with issues that are critical to the environment and largely work with advocacy groups, government agencies to ensure all the environmental laws are adhered to.
Tax Lawyers - They handle the different kinds of tax-related issues of corporations as well as individuals while keeping up with the Indian Revenue Services (IRS) rules.
Note: In case you are confused about the job profile you want to pursue, do not hesitate to take our free Career Profiling Test! It will analyse your attitude, personality and interests to suggest the most suitable career profile for you. If you have any queries, drop them in the QnA zone.
Lawyers can find a variety of employment opportunities in different sectors. Some of the top sectors that hire lawyers or legal advisors are provided below.
Corporate businesses
MNCs
Media and Entertainment houses
Political Parties
Engineering firms
Information Technology companies
Finance companies
Consulting Firms
Universities and Colleges
A Lawyer can choose to work in a private firm or public firm depending on the requirements. Few of the most popular recruiting agencies that hire a lawyer are mentioned underneath.
The Lawyer's Hub
Kapil Gupta & Associates
Legistify.com
SRP & Associates
Bankai Group
ATMA
Uday Shankar Associates
Sanjay Mann & Associates
In order to make it to a good law college in India, it is important to clear national level exams such as AILET, CLAT or LSAT or other university-specific law exams such as IPU CET Law, DU LLB, BHU UET Law etc. For that, one needs to have a clear understanding of legal terms and profession. Some of the best books and study material for aspiring lawyers are as follows.
The New Lawyer’s Handbook- 101 Success Strategies They Didn't Teach You in Law School by Karen Thalacker.
Tomorrow's Lawyers: An Introduction to Your Future by Richard Susskind
Best For Aspiring Activist Attorneys: The Story of My Life by Clarence Darrow
The Rule of Law by Tom Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill
Making Your Case: The Art of Persuading Judges by Antonin Scalia and Bryan A. Garner
High earning potential as lawyers are among the top-paid professionals in the country.
Lawyers enjoy a lot of prestige and power ultimately leading to respect and success.
They get the opportunity to help others and work towards equality in all respects while abiding by the law.
There are diverse opportunities in the field of law - family, corporate, financial, civil, criminal etc.
Lawyers can earn additional income by working as consultants, guest lecturers at law colleges, public speakers etc.
Lawyers may require to work under stress while abiding by deadlines, client demands, changing laws etc.
The competitive job market in the field of law is another disadvantage of picking up a career as a lawyer.
The workload of lawyers often translates into long working hours that may add to fatigue and health issues of the individual.
Take our test and find out if it suits your strengths.
The law courses that you can do to become a lawyer in India are a 5-year integrated LL.B course, 3-year LL.B course and LL.M courses. The main exam that you have to take is the AIBE (All India Bar Exam) conducted by the Bar Council of India.
LSAT (Law School Aptitude Test) is an entrance-level law exam that law aspirants have to appear for if they want to take up a law course in the USA, Canada, etc countries. Other law exams abroad are Cambridge Law Test (CLT) and Law National Aptitude Test (LNAT).
The LL.B course can only be taken if you have completed your graduation course. You can even become a lawyer with your integrated law degree after you have taken the law exam.
The essential skills that you need to become a lawyer are Communication Skills, Analytical Skills, Strong decision-making and Judgment Skills, Resilience, Interpersonal Skills, Creative Strength, Discipline, Self-Confidence, Presence of mind, Legal Knowledge, Legal Research, Attention to detail, Research skills, Physical and mental endurance, etc.
The universities which provide courses to become a lawyer are NLSIU, Bangalore, NALSAR, Hyderabad, The ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education (IFHE Hyderabad), Brainware University (BU), Kolkata, People's University (PU), Bhopal, LNCT University (LNCTU), Bhopal, Jagannath University (JU), Jaipur, University of Technology - Sanganer (UOT), Jaipur, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies (UPES), Dehradun, IEC University, SOA University - Siksha 'O' Anusandhan, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University (BBAU), School of Law, Christ University, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, etc.
There are different types of law courses that you can do to become a lawyer. The courses are Integrated LL.B (5 Years), LL.B (3 Years), LL.M, Certificate in Law and Medicine, Certificate in Legislative Drafting, Certificate in International Humanitarian Law, Certificate in Human Rights, Certificate in Anti-Human Trafficking, Certificate in Social Work and Criminal Justice System, etc.
You need to pursue an undergraduate law course such as BA LL.B, BBA LL.B or B.Sc LL.B. Before enrolling for these courses aspirants should clear law entrance exams. Almost all top law colleges in India enrol students who have scored the highest marks in these entrance exams.
The qualification of a lawyer abroad depends on A-level, getting a UG degree, doing LPC and completing specialist training. Apart from these, the skills that are needed to become a lawyer are verbal and written reasoning skills, precision for all matters, the ability to understand and interpret information, the capability to analyse facts and draw conclusions and other skills.
The entrance exams that you need to appear for to become a lawyer are Common Law Admission Test, All India Law Entrance Test, LSAT, TS LAWCET, TS PGLCET, MH CET Law, CULEE (Christ University Law Entrance Exam), AP LAWCET, AP PGLCET, UPES Law Studies Aptitude Test (ULSAT), Kerala LL.B Entrance Exam (KLEE), BVP CET LAW, Army Institute of Law Entrance Test (AIL LET), RULET, DU LLB Entrance Exam, LFAT, BHU UET (Law), etc.
A lawyer works in a court, gives advice and represents their clients. They have to talk to their clients, judges, coworkers and others and analyse research on legal issues. They utilise their legal knowledge to help clients understand and navigate legal matters.
A skilled lawyer is required in corporate business, media and entertainment houses, finance companies, educational institutions, IT companies, government agencies, etc.
The legal profession, like any other profession, also has its own pros and cons. Being a lawyer can be very rewarding for someone who is passionate about the law and the responsibilities it comes with. However, the job can involve lack of work-life balance, stress, pressure, etc.
The working hours of a lawyer are not fixed. Most lawyers work full-time and are required to work for longer hours depending on the types of cases they are handling.
The average pay of a lawyer in India is INR 7,84,000 per year.
The job responsibilities of a lawyer usually includes advising and representing clients in courts, communicating with clients and those involved in the cases, conducting research and analysis of legal problems, interpreting laws for individuals and businesses and so on.
A good lawyer should have skills such as effective verbal and written communication skills, creative problem-solving, ability to work under pressure, commercial awareness, teamwork, information analysis and research, attention to detail and so on.
In order to become a lawyer, you would first have to get into a good law institute by clearing entrance exams like CLAT, AILET, LSAT India, SLAT or any other exam approved/conducted by the chosen institute. After completing UG law programmes like B.A.LL.B, LL.B, B.B.A.LL.B, etc., candidates would have to clear the BAR exam to be able to practice law.
There are different types of lawyers such as Criminal Lawyer, Family Lawyer, Immigration Lawyer, Intellectual Property Lawyer, Corporate Lawyer, Tax Lawyer, Civil Litigation Lawyer, etc.
With the opening up of new legal career options now and then, law has emerged to become one of the most exciting career options in India and across the world. The demand for skilled lawyers is only rising and it is a noble and respected profession. Having said that, it is entirely based on the candidate's interest and passion for the job.
A lawyer's job is to represent clients and provide them with an informed understanding of their legal rights. He/she acts as an officer of the legal system and has a special responsibility in the administration of justice.
You could become a Civil Lawyer , a Corporate Lawyer , a Cyber Lawyer after studying LL.M. (Master of Law).
You could become a Cyber Lawyer , a Criminal Lawyer , a Civil Lawyer , a Real Estate Lawyer after studying LL.B. (Bachelor of Laws).
Yes, it is possible for Indian Law students to migrate abroad. However, other countries may require you to take up some legal practicing course as some kind of a bridge programme to atune you to their legal system.
LL.B-> Publish Research Papers -> Collect recommendations -> Apply to official website alongwith SOP
Some colleges close their admissions around November while others allow late admissions until January.