This article is written by Aditya Shrivastava of team iPleaders.

Students, who are willing to study law and want admission in a National Law University, are required to give Common Law Admission Test (CLAT). This year CLAT is being conducted by National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS), Kochi.

Here is everything you need to know about CLAT, 2018.

How To Apply

The application for CLAT 2018 is available online. The form is available on the website: www.clat.ac.in

Documents To Be Uploaded With The Online Application

While applying for CLAT online, there is a list of documents that need to be uploaded on their online portal. The documents need to be scanned and uploaded at the time of the registration. Here is an exhaustive list of documents you need to be ready with:

• Front facing passport size recent photograph

• Scanned signature of the candidate

• The scanned copy of the certificate in PDF format issued by the competent authority to support the claim of Specially Abled Persons (SAP).

Application Fee / Previous Years Question Papers’ Fee

• Application fee for General/OBC/SAP and other category candidates: Rs.4,000/-
• Application fee for SC/ST category candidates: Rs.3,500/-
• The cost of previous years’ question papers is Rs.500/- (not included in the CLAT-2018 application fee of Rs.4,000/- or Rs.3,500/-, as the case may be)

Mode of Payment of Application Fee

Application fee can be paid online or through bank challan generated online.

Offline payments can be made after registering the application online and generating challans online. The print out of the challans generated have to be taken to the relevant bank for payment over the counter. Offline payments are to be made in CASH only.

The application form, complete in all respects and after payment of fees must be finally submitted on or before 31st March, 2018 (11:59 P.M.).

Eligibility

Individuals who are eligible to apply for CLAT, 2018:

Under Graduate Programme

• There will be no upper age limit for the UG Programme in CLAT 2018.
• As regards minimum percentage of marks in the qualifying examination (i.e., 10+2), the candidates must have secured:
  • Forty five percent (45%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Unreserved/OBC/Specially Abled Persons (SAP) and other categories, and
  • Forty Percent (40%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) categories.
• Candidates who are appearing in the qualifying examination in March/April, 2018 are also eligible to appear in CLAT 2018 online examination. However, they shall be required to produce an evidence of their passing the qualifying examination at the time of admission, failing which they shall lose their right to be considered for admission.
• The result of the qualifying examination (i.e., 10+2) shall be submitted by the candidate at the time of admission failing which the candidate shall be ineligible for admission to the Course.
• In case of equal marks, the break of tie shall be by the following procedure and order as under:
  • Higher marks in the component /section on legal aptitude in the exam;
  • Higher age;
  • Computerised draw of lots

Post Graduate Programme

• The candidates must have minimum percentage of marks in the qualifying examination [i.e. LL.B./Five-Year Integrated LL.B. (Hons.)/any other equivalent exam] as under:
  Fifty five percent (55%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Unreserved/OBC/Specially Abled Persons (SAP) and other categories, and
  Fifty percent (50%) marks in case of candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) categories.
• The candidate must have passed/appeared in the final semester/final year examination of the qualifying examination on the date of his/her admission.
• In case of candidates who have appeared in the qualifying examination, he/she may submit his/her final result of qualifying examination within the time frame prescribed by the respective University/Institute. Till then such candidates may be given provisional admission.
• In case of equal marks, the break of tie shall be by procedure and order as under:

1. 1. Higher age;
   2. Computerized draw of lots.

Pattern Of The Exam

CLAT is considered as one of the most difficult entrance exam. It is designed keeping overall skills that are required by a lawyer at any point of time. The Pattern of the exam is as under :

Under Graduate Programme

Scope and coverage of questions under different subject areas:

• English including comprehension:

The English section is designed to test a candidate’s proficiency in English. It comprises of comprehension passages and grammar. In the comprehension section, candidates will be assessed on their understanding of the passage and its central theme, meanings of words used therein, etc. The grammar section requires correction of incorrect grammatical sentences, filling of blanks in sentences with appropriate words, etc.

• General Knowledge and Current Affairs

General knowledge will be evaluated on general awareness of current issues including static general knowledge. Questions on current affairs will test the candidate’s on their knowledge of national and international current affairs, which can be a huge sphere to cover.

• Mathematics

This section will test the candidate’s knowledge on elementary mathematics, i.e., maths taught upto 10th Standard.

• Legal Aptitude

This section is designed to test the candidate’s interest towards the study of law, research aptitude and problem solving ability. Questions may include legal propositions (described in the paper), and a set of facts to which the said proposition has to be applied. Some propositions may not be “true” in the real sense, candidates will have to assume the “truth” of these propositions and answer the questions accordingly.

• Logical Reasoning

The purpose of the logical reasoning section is to test the candidate’s ability to identify patterns, logical links and rectify illogical arguments. It may include a variety of logical reasoning questions such as syllogisms, logical sequences, analogies, etc. However, visual reasoning will not be tested.

The pattern of Question Paper for the UG Courses in CLAT 2018:

(a)	Maximum Marks	200
(b)	Duration of the Exam	2 Hours
(c)	Multiple-Choice Questions	200 questions of one mark each
(d)	Subject areas with weight-age:
1. English (including comprehension)		40 Marks
2. General Knowledge and Current Affairs		50 Marks
3. Elementary Mathematics (Numerical Ability)		20 Marks
4. Legal Aptitude		50 Marks
5. Logical Reasoning		40 Marks
(e)	Negative Marking	0.25 Mark for each wrong answer shall be deducted

Post-Graduate Programme

The pattern of the question paper for admission to the Post-Graduate Course for CLAT-2018 is:

(a)	Maximum Marks	150
(b)	Duration of the Exam	2 Hours
(c)	Multiple-Choice Questions	150 questions of one mark each
(d)	Syllabus	Questions will be asked from the following areas of Law:
1. Constitutional Law		50 Marks
2. Jurisprudence		50 Marks
3. Other Law Subjects such as Contract, Torts, Criminal Law, International Law, IPR, etc.		50 Marks
(e)	Negative Marking	0.25 Mark will be deducted for each wrong answer

 

The entire schedule of CLAT can be found here. CLAT is undeniably a difficult entrance exam to crack. Securing admission in a National Law University can be a golden step towards your career in law. However, it is quite important that you are trained with perfection to get the desired results. LawSikho in association with iPleaders, which is one of India’s premier legal education online portal, designed by the alumni of NUJS, Kolkata, has come up with an online course which can rocket the speed of your chances of cracking CLAT. Enrol now and see your career taking the perfect support it needs!

Good luck!