COMMON LAW

ADMISSION TEST:
A GUIDE TO NLU
ADMISSIONS
 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CONTENTS
Foreword  03
Common Law Admission Test – An Introduction  04
Conducting Body 06
Seat Intake  07
Eligibility Criteria 11
Exam Pattern  12
Cutoff  14
Timeline  18
History19

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

FOREWORD
Common Law Admission Test, the gateway to pursue your law dream just after you
have completed your high school. The admission test popularly known as CLAT is
the entrance exam to admissions into a league of elite law schools in India, called
National Law Universities (NLUs). If you have an interest in pursuing law soon after
your 10+2, CLAT is the entrance path. Careers360 brings you ‘ CLAT - A guide to
NLU Admissions ‘ ebook with an objective to help law aspirants like you in getting
an overview of the Common Law Admission Test.
‘CLAT - A guide to NLU Admissions’ has been an effort of Careers360 to bring up
all the important modalities of the Common Law Admission Test. In this ebook,
you will get to know about the courses, law schools, timeline, application process,
eligibility besides the history of the most coveted law entrance exam.
Through this ebook on CLAT, we try to help you in taking a good decision towards
choosing law as a career field.

All the best!

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

COMMON LAW ADMISSION TEST

– AN INTRODUCTION
The Common Law Admission Test which is also known as CLAT was first introduced in
the year 2008 as the Common Entrance Test for admissions to participating National Law
Universities (NLUs).

The pilot university to conduct CLAT for the first time was National Law School of India
University Bangalore (NLSIU) established on May 11, 2008. In the year 2008, there were
only seven participating NLUs which collectively offered a total of 1037 seats for under-
graduate admissions.

Over the last 10 years, thirteen more National Law Universities have joined the CLAT
Commitee as the participating institutes. The participating NLUs and CLAT Committee
offer admissions on the basis of admission test score.

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

Year UG Registrations
2018 51000

2017 50676

2016 45000

2015 39686

2014 31231

2013 30915

2012 25769

2011 24256

2010 18375

2009 15000

2008 11000

For CLAT, all NLUs conduct a common counselling for admissions into the five-year
integrated law programme. If we look into the statistics, the number of registrations have
increased over the past ten years in the undergraduate law programmes.

Besides NLUs, many private law institutes also accept CLAT scores for undergraduate law
admissions to their programmes. There are also some National Law Universities which do
not participate in CLAT and offer admissions to the candidates by conducting their own
entrances namely National Law University Delhi which conducts All India Law Entrance
Test (AILET) and Himachal Pradesh National Law University which conducts Himachal
Pradesh National Law Entrance Test (HPNET/HPNLET).

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

WHO CONDUCTS CLAT

Common Law Admission Test was conducted for the first time in the year 2008 by Nation-
al Law University Bangalore for admissions into five-year integrated law programmes.
Since then CLAT is being conducted by all the participating National Law Universities
rotation wise. The CLAT Committee is formed by the participating NLUs of CLAT. The
table below gives a clear overview of the year-wise name of the CLAT conducting NLUs.

Year CLAT Conducting National Law University (NLU)

2019 National Law University Odisha Cuttack

2018 National University of Advanced Legal Studies Kochi

2017 Chanakya National Law University, Patna

2016 Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law Patiala

2015 Dr. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University Lucknow

2014 Gujarat National Law University Gandhinagar

2013 Hidayatullah National Law University Raipur

2012 National Law University Jodhpur

2011 West Bengal National University of Juridical Universities Kolkata

2010 National Law Institute University Bhopal

2009 NALSAR University of Law Hyderabad

2008 National Law School of India University Bangalore

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT SEAT INTAKE

There are as many as 2420 seats offered at different NLUs, which are filled through CLAT.
We here bring you seat statistics with institute-wise break-up in different NLUs.

National Law Universities UG Seats

National Law School of India University Bangalore 80

National Academy of Legal Studies And Research Hyderabad 105

National Law Institute University Bhopal 120

West Bengal National University Judicial Studies Kolkata 127

National Law University Jodhpur 115 (15*)

Hidayatullah National Law University Raipur 160

Gujarat National Law University Gandhinagar 180

Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University Lucknow 178 (16*) (2#)

Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law Patiala 180

Chanakya National Law University Patna 120 (20*)

National University of Advanced Legal Studies Kochi 60 (6*)

National Law University Odisha Cuttack 180

National University of Study and Research in Law Ranchi 120 (18*) (2#)

National Law University and Judicial Academy Guwahati 120

Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University Vishakhapatnam 120

Tamil Nadu National Law School Tiruchirappalli 110

Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai 50 (10*) (2#)

Maharashtra National Law University Nagpur 120

Maharashtra National Law University Aurangabad 50

Dharmashastra National Law University Jabalpur 120

*NRI/NRI Sponsored Seats

#Students of Jammu & Kashmir

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

OTHER LAW INSTITUTIONS ACCEPTING

CLAT SCORES
Apart from 20 NLUs, there are around 46 other law schools which accept CLAT scores.

Law School City

Alliance University Bangalore

Amity University Uttar Pradesh

Asian Law College Noida

DIRD Holambi Khurd Delhi

Dr. K.N. Modi Unversity Rajasthan

Faculty of Law, Marwadi University Rajkot

Galgotias University Uttar Pradesh

Geeta Institute of Law Panipat

Gitam School of Law Visakhapatnam

Harlal School of Law Greater Noida

ICFAI University Dehradun

ICFAI University Tripura

IFIM Law College Bangalore

IIMT University, College of Law Meerut

IMS Unison University Dehradun

Indore Institute of Law Indore

Institute of Law, Nirma University Ahmedabad

Institute of Legal Studies and Research, GLA University Mathura

ISBR Law College Bangalore

Jain University Bangalore

Jims Engineering Management Technical Campus (JEMTEC) School of Law Greater Noida

Kalinga University, Faculty of Law Naya Raipur

Law College Dehradun, Uttaranchal University Dehradun

Lloyd Law College Greater Noida

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

Law School City

Madhya Pradesh Dharamshastra National Law University Jabalpur

Maharishi University of Information Technology Delhi NCR

Mahatma Jyoti Rao Phoole University, MJRP Academy of Law Jaipur

Manipal University Jaipur

Mewar Law Institute Ghaziabad

MSB Global Law Institute Maharaja Surajmal Brij University Bharatpur

NIMT Vidhi Evam Kanoon Sansthan (NIMT Institute of Method and Law), Greater Noida

NMIMS, Kirit P. Mehta School of Law Mumbai

PES University Bangalore

Raffles University, Neemrana Rajasthan

Renaissance Law College Indore

Reva University Bangalore

RNB Global University Bikaner

Sandip University Nashik

Shree Guru Gobind Singh Tricentenary (SGT) University Gurugram

Shri Vaishnav Institute of Law Indore

Siddhartha Law College Dehradun

SRM University Haryana

The NorthCap University Gurgaon

United world School of Law, Karnavati University Gandhinagar

Vivekananda Global University Jaipur

Xavier University Bhubaneswar

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

ORGANIZATIONS ACCEPTING CLAT

SCORES
Besides admissions into NLUs and Private Law Schools, there are some of Public Sector
Undertakings (PSUs) which recruit CLAT test takers for the positions of Legal Officers/
Trainee Legal Advisors. The list below mentions them –

Public Sector Undertakings

●● Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited

●● ONGC Ltd, Dehradun
●● Power System Operation Corporation Limited
●● THDC India Limited
●● NTPC Limited
●● Oil India Limited

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT ELIGIBILITY
This is the most important part for an aspirant who wish to seek admission into the under-
graduate and postgraduate law programmes. Candidates are advised to always read the
eligibility criteria first before proceeding to fill the application form.

For Five-Year Integrated Law Programmes

Academic Qualification
You need to have qualified Higher Secondary School/ Intermediate or equivalent exami-
nation from 10+2 education system. You need to secure at least 45% marks in aggregate of
the total marks and if belonging to SC/ST category, need to secure at least 40% marks.

Age Bar
There is no age bar to appear in CLAT as per Supreme Court’s stay order in 2017.

Who else are eligible for CLAT?

Candidates who are appearing in their Class 12th or any other equivalent examination will
also be considered eligible for applying for CLAT, subjected to minimum marks required
for the common law admission test. Candidates will need to submit their proof of qualify-
ing and mark-sheet at the time of admission.

For Postgraduate Law Programmes

Academic Qualification
Candidates applying for postgraduate law programme, LLM need to possess a bachelor’s
degree in law. The law degree can be of five-year integrated or three year law programme
from an institution approved by Bar Council of India. A candidate needs to score atleast 55
percent in his/her qualifying degree. Whereas candidates belonging to reserved categories
have been give 5 percent relaxation wherein they need to score 50 percent marks in their
qualifying degree of law.

Age Bar
Moreover, there is no age bar to appear in CLAT to seek admission into the postgraduate
law programme.

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT EXAM PATTERN

For Undergraduate law programmes
Exam Mode – Online
Exam Duration – 2 Hours
Number of Questions – 200 Questions
Total Marks – 200 Marks
Marking Scheme - Candidates are awarded 1 mark each for correct answer in CLAT
paper and 0.25 marks are deducted for every incorrect response from the total CLAT
score. Non-attempted questions are awarded zero marks as no marks are deducted for this.
Subjects - The online paper comprises the questions from the following subjects

●● English (including Comprehension)

●● General Knowledge & Current Affairs
●● Elementary Mathematics (Numerical Ability)
●● Legal Aptitude
●● Logical Reasoning

For Postgraduate law programmes

Candidates to appear in CLAT to seek admission into the postgraduate law programmes
need to attempt the law examination from the following sections -

●● Law of Torts
●● Family Law
●● Criminal Law
●● International Law
●● Property Law
●● Jurisprudence
●● Law of Contracts
●● Intellectual Property Law
●● Law of Contracts

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

Section-wise distribution of marks for Undergraduate law programmes

Subjects Number of Quetions Marks

English including Comprehension 40 40

Legal Aptitude 50 50

Logical Reasoning 40 40

General Knowledge and Current Affairs 50 50

Elementary Mathematics and Numerical Ability 20 20

Section-wise distribution of marks for Postgraduate law programmes

Subjects Number of Questions Marks

Jurisprudence 50 50

Constitutional Law 50 50

Other Subjects 50 50

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT CUTOFF
Candidates appearing for CLAT, also need to check the cutoff marks which is the mini-
mum marks required for admissions into respective NLUs for admissions to undergradu-
ate law programmes. Below tables mention the CLAT cutoff rank for every NLU.

CLAT Cutoff 2018

Universities Cutoff*
National Law School of India University 66

National Academy of Legal Studies and Research 135

National Law Institute University 386

West Bengal National University of Judicial Sciences 260

National Law University Jodhpur 376

Hidayatullah National Law University 657

Gujarat National Law University 494

Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University 668

Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law 924

Chanakya National Law University 1186

National University of Advanced Legal Studies 928

National Law University Odisha 1167

National University of Study and Research in Law 1255

National Law University and Judicial Academy 1556

Tamil Nadu National Law School 1571

Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University 1432

Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai 503

Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur 1532

Maharashtra National Law University, Aurangabad 1588

*Minimum marks required for admissions to All India Category seats for the UG programme

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT Cutoff 2017

Universities Cutoff*
National Law School of India University 59

National Academy of Legal Studies and Research 130

National Law Institute University 351

West Bengal National University of Judicial Sciences 213

National Law University Jodhpur 343

Hidayatullah National Law University 574

Gujarat National Law University 453

Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University 627

Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law 801

Chanakya National Law University 909

National University of Advanced Legal Studies 826

National Law University Odisha 1023

National University of Study and Research in Law 1051

National Law University and Judicial Academy 1124

Tamil Nadu National Law School 1151

Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University 1180

Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai 478

Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur 1126

*Minimum marks required for admissions to All India Category seats for the UG programme

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT Cutoff 2016

Universities Cutoff*
National Law School of India University 58

National Academy of Legal Studies and Research 123

National Law Institute University 339

West Bengal National University of Judicial Sciences 221

National Law University Jodhpur 347

Hidayatullah National Law University 555

Gujarat National Law University 465

Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University 626

Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law 759

Chanakya National Law University 911

National University of Advanced Legal Studies 918

National Law University Odisha 1038

National University of Study and Research in Law 1037

National Law University and Judicial Academy 1103

Tamil Nadu National Law School 1160

Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University 1132

Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai 466

*Minimum marks required for admissions to All India Category seats for the UG programme

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT Cutoff 2015

Universities Cutoff*
National Law School of India University 54

National Academy of Legal Studies and Research 125

National Law Institute University 285

West Bengal National University of Judicial Sciences 203

National Law University Jodhpur 308

Hidayatullah National Law University 500

Gujarat National Law University 398

Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University 569

Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law 697

Chanakya National Law University 877

National University of Advanced Legal Studies 814

National Law University Odisha 888

National University of Study and Research in Law 3284

National Law University and Judicial Academy 2192

Tamil Nadu National Law School 4134

Damodaram Sanjivayya National Law University 7758

*Minimum marks required for admissions to All India Category seats for the UG programme

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT TIMELINE
The CLAT Committee announces its admission test notification in the month of Decem-
ber.. The application form of CLAT is released in the first week of January.

The conducting body announces the application form in online mode and closes it’s online
window by the second week of April. Candidates can download the admit card of CLAT
from third week of April as the admission test is usually scheduled to be held in the second
week of May.

The CLAT Committee then announces the results of CLAT by the last week of May which
is followed by a centralized online counselling from the first week of June. CLAT Commit-
tee organizes the counselling and seat allotment for as many as 3 rounds and the admis-
sion process is closed by the second week of July.

Here is the CLAT Timeline commonly followed -

Events Dates
Notification Last week of December

Application Form First week of January

Admit Card Third week of April

Online Exam Second week of May

Result and Rank List Last week of May

1st Seat Allotment List First week of June

Payment of counselling fee Till second week of June

2nd Seat Allotment List Second week of June

Payment of counselling fee Till third week of June

3rd Seat Allotment List Third week of June

Payment of counselling fee Till fourth week of June

Closure of admission process Till Second week of July

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

CLAT HISTORY
CLAT 2018 – This year National University of Advanced Legal Studies Kochi administered
the Common Law Admission Test. CLAT 2018 was conducted on May 13, 2018 with around
51,000 CLAT aspirants appeared in the law exam for admissions to nearly 2300 seats on
offer across 19 National Law Universities (NLUs). Candidates faced many technical glitch-
es during the examination.

CLAT 2017 – Chanakya Law University Patna conducted CLAT in 2017 on May 14. There
were 18 participating institutes in the Common Law Admission Test. There were many
technical glitches in the website. In this year, the age bar to appear in any law examination
was removed by the Supreme Court of India.

CLAT 2016 – Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Patiala conducted the most sought
after law entrance exam for a total of 2190 seats distributed among 16 participating Nation-
al Law Universities (NLUs). Some petitioners have approached the Supreme Court of India
appealing for the formation of a permanent CLAT conducting body with an objective to
improve the exam system.

CLAT 2015 – The year gave a nightmare to both the examinees and the conducting body,
Dr. Ram Manohar National Law University (RMLNLU). The Common Law Admission
Test was embroiled in a number of controversies including alleged erroneous questions
and wrong merit lists. However, there were some news worth rejoice too. While the exam
was conducted in online mode for the very first time, the Supreme Court ordered the CLAT
Committee to lift age bar for applications.

CLAT 2014 – Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) conducted CLAT this year and for

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

the very first time counselling was held in centralized online mode. CLAT 2014 was also
filled in controversies including mismatch of answer-sheets.

CLAT 2013 – CLAT was conducted by Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU),
Raipur where the test takers got surprised with the introduction of the new marking sys-
tem. As per the negative marking system, for every wrong answer, a deduction of 0.25
marks (one-fourth) was made from the total marks secured by the examinee.

CLAT 2012 – National Law University Jodhpur had conducted the exam and this year
CLAT was surrounded by many controversies. The test takers alleged that several of the
questions were set out of syllabus and the pattern was entirely changed. Moreover errors
appeared in the published rank list and a fresh rank list was put up in place of the wrong
one.

CLAT 2011 – The coveted law entrance exam was conducted by WBNUJS Kolkata. The
law aspirants were disappointed with the standard of the examination. Moreover some of
the answers of various questions were even underlined due to the negligence of the organ-
izers.

CLAT 2010 - NLIU Bhopal conducted the law entrance exam for a total of 11 participat-
ing NLUs.

CLAT 2009 – NALSAR Hyderabad which was the conducting body for 2009, had to re-
schedule the exam from May 17 to May 31 as the question papers got leaked.

CLAT 2008 – Common Law Admission Test (CLAT), a common but most sought after
exam for law aspirants was conducted for the first time. In 2008, the CLAT Committee
was headed by NLSIU Bangalore and as many as seven NLUs participated in the common
entrance test for a total of 1037 seats.

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 ALL ABOUT CLAT

Appearing for the coveted law entrance exams like CLAT, AILET and SLAT?

Do you need practice papers for free?

Download here Official Sample Papers

Candidates may have some questions regarding the Common
Law Admission Test.

They can resolve their queries on our QnA platform.

Click here to ask questions

All the best!!

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