CLAT Syllabus

What is CLAT Syllabus for UG & PG Programs?

The CLAT syllabus contains information on the various topics / subjects, the marking scheme and the examination pattern adopted in the CLAT entrance exam for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate programs.

The syllabi for LLB & LLM programs are different. However, the basic CLAT Exam Pattern i.e. no. of questions & allocated duration of exam remains similar for both. CLAT syllabus for undergraduate entrance exam is based on passage from different 5 subjects. Whereas CLAT syllabus for postgraduate is based on llb core topics & subjects.

Find below detailed clat syllabus for 5 years integrated ug course & 1 year pg course.

CLAT UG Syllabus

Overview on the Syllabus

The CLAT UG would focus on evaluating the comprehension and reasoning skills and abilities of candidates. Overall, it is designed to be a test of aptitude and skills that are necessary for a legal education rather than prior knowledge, though prior knowledge occasionally may be useful to respond to questions in the Current Affairs including General Knowledge section.

The CLAT UG shall be a 2-hour test, with 120 multiple-choice questions carrying 1 mark each. There shall be negative marking of 0.25 marks for every wrong answer. These questions would be divided across the following 5 subjects:

• English Language
• Current Affairs, including General Knowledge
• Legal Reasoning
• Logical Reasoning
• Quantitative Techniques

English Language

In this section of the CLAT UG, a student will be provided passages of about 450 words each. These passages will be derived from contemporary or historically significant fiction and non-fiction writing, and would be of a standard that a 12th standard student may be able to read in about 5-7 minutes.

Each passage will be followed by a series of questions that will require a student to demonstrate his/her comprehension and language skills, including his/her abilities to:

• Read and comprehend the main point discussed in the passage, as well as any arguments and viewpoints discussed or set out in the passage;
• Draw inferences and conclusions based on the passage;
• Summarise the passage;
• Compare and contrast the different arguments or viewpoints set out in the passage; and
• Understand the meaning of various words and phrases in the context that they are used in the passage.

Current Affairs Including General Knowledge

In this section of CLAT UG, a student will be provided passages of up to 450 words each. The passages will be derived from news, journalistic sources and other non-fiction writing. The questions may include an examination of legal information or knowledge discussed in or related to the passage, but would not require any additional knowledge of the law beyond the passage.

Each passage will be followed by a series of questions that will require he/she to demonstrate his/her awareness of various aspects of current affairs and general knowledge, including:

• Contemporary events of significance from India and the world;
• Arts and culture;
• International affairs; and
• Historical events of continuing significance.

Legal Reasoning

In this section of CLAT UG, a student will be expected to read passages of around 450 words each. The passages may relate to fact situations or scenarios involving legal matters, public policy questions or moral philosophical enquiries. He/she will not require any prior knowledge of law to attempt the questions in this section. He/she will benefit from a general awareness of contemporary legal and moral issues to better apply general principles or propositions to the given fact scenarios.

Each passage would be followed by a series of questions that will require you to:

• Identify and infer the rules and principles set out in the passage;
• Apply such rules and principles to various fact situations; and
• Understand how changes to the rules or principles may alter their application to various fact situations.

Logical Reasoning

The Logical Reasoning section of the CLAT UG will include a series of short passages of about 450 words each. Each passage will be followed by one or more questions that will require a student to:

• Recognise an argument, its premises and conclusions;
• Read and identify the arguments set out in the passage;
• Critically analyse patterns of reasoning, and assess how conclusions may depend on particular premises or evidence, and how conclusions may be strengthened or weakened as a consequence of an alteration in premises or supporting facts;
• Infer what follows from the passage and apply these inferences to new situations;
• Draw relationships and analogies, identify contradictions and equivalence, and assess the effectiveness of arguments.

Quantitative Techniques

The Quantitative Techniques section of the CLAT UG will include short sets of facts or propositions, or other textual representations of numerical information, followed by a series of questions. A student will be required to derive information from the passages or questions, and apply mathematical operations on such information.

The questions will require you to:

• Derive, infer, and manipulate numerical information set out in such passages; and
• Apply various 10th standard mathematical operations on such information, including from areas such as ratios and proportions, basic algebra, mensuration and statistical estimation.

In addition, a student should develop his/her capacity to read and understand bodies of text, ensure he/she stay abreast of news and current affairs by regularly reading quality newspapers and periodicals, and improve his/her speed of answering questions on quantitative techniques by practising with contents & materials.

CLAT PG Syllabus

Overview on the Syllabus

The CLAT PG features an emphasis on the domain core knowledge & comprehension abilities of the students. It shall be of 120 minutes duration, with one section:

• This section would include 120 objective-type questions carrying 1 mark each. There shall be a negative marking of 0.25 marks for every wrong answer.

The paper will be based on the mandatory subjects of the undergraduate program and includes-

• Constitutional Law
• Jurisprudence
• Administrative Law
• Law of Contract
• Torts
• Family Law
• Criminal Law
• Property Law
• Company Law
• Public International Law
• Tax Law
• Environmental Law
• Labour & Industrial Law

In this section of the CLAT PG, he/she will be provided extracts from primary legal materials such as important court decisions in various fields of law, statutes or regulations. Each passage will be followed by a series of questions that will require he/she to demonstrate the:

• Ability to read and comprehend the issues discussed in the passage, as well as any arguments and viewpoints discussed or set out in the passage;
• Awareness of the issues discussed in the passage, as well as of legal issues and facts related to and arising out of the passage and the judgment or statute from which it is extracted;
• Summarise the passage; and
• Ability to apply your knowledge of the fields of law discussed in the passage.

For the CLAT Preparation, a student should: Read and refresh his/her knowledge of important judgments, and try to discern various issues discussed in such judgments & important constitutional and legislative provisions, particularly those that may have been discussed in recent judgments; it would also be useful to ensure he/she is aware of historical case law and amendments related to such provisions, so that he /she has a more complete awareness of such provisions and the issues related to them.