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BCI Strikes Down One Year LLM Program and Introduces All India Entrance Examination For LLM
The one-year integrated LLM program which was introduced in 2013 is now struck down by the Bar Council of India (BCI). BCI mandates that the LLM program awarding a master's degree in law must be for two years divided into four semesters as per freshly introduced Legal Education (Postgraduate, Doctoral, Executive, Vocational, Clinical, and other continuing Education) Rules, 2020. Also, an undergraduate degree in three years or five years LLB will be a prerequisite for admission to LLM. One-year shall remain operative only to this academic year.
Henceforth any specialization in Human Rights, Trade Law, or Business law without having an undergraduate law degree will not be considered as master's in law, and any person possessing such specializations without a law degree cannot be termed as a law graduate.
Further, BCI has also introduced a uniform entrance exam for the LLM degree throughout the country. A candidate aspiring to pursue a master's in law must go through Post Graduate Common Entrance Test in Law (PGCETL) which shall be conducted by BCI. Based on the rank secured by a candidate in such an entrance test, he/she can be admitted to the colleges. LLM degrees obtained in foreign universities will be valid in India only if the LLM is completed after graduating from three years or five years of law degree in India or any recognized LLB degree in foreign. The Rules clarifies that a one-year LLM program secured from any foreign universities shall be invalid here-after. BCI also mandates the colleges offering LLM courses must have a 1:10 student-teacher ratio. A college offering a master’s program in law must have a minimum of 20 to a maximum of 50 students per batch, rules mandates. And the teaching faculty shall consist of a minimum of 10 lecturers out of which 4 of them shall be professors or associate professors.
At the outset, Rules look forward to enriching the quality of legal education and profession in the country. BCI will also be introducing two professional efficiency enrichment courses exclusively for enrolled advocates. The Rules shall come into effect when BCI notifies.
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