The legal profession has always been one of the most prestigious professions in any common law country like India. The famous quote ‘Sky has no limits’ fits perfectly to the legal profession which is undoubtedly limitless. The career opportunities for a law graduate in India are on a constant rise (from corporate to government services to litigation and judiciary) and so is the quantum of law graduates every year.
Law is the wheel on which a civilized society runs, that’s why every institution whether political, social, or economic renders a considerable requirement of legal experts or specialists in law. Therefore, lawyers or law graduates enjoy a special status in every institution or organization.
In the Indian education system graduation in any discipline makes you eligible for most of the top public as well as private sector offices in which you may enter by way of several entrance exams such as UPSC, etc. but graduation in law provides you a special edge over non-law graduates because, in addition to those career doorways that are open to all graduates (including law graduates), there are a lot of specific career options wherein the utmost requirement is a degree in law.
Therefore, the circumference of career options available to a law graduate is bigger than those available to a non-law graduate. A non-law graduate can enter only executive or administrative organ of government offices but a law graduate is eligible for the judiciary as well. A law graduate has a greater pool of career options to choose from as compared to a non-law/simple graduate.
Career Options for Law Graduates
Some of the most glorifying career opportunities exclusively available to a law graduate are:
1. Litigation:
After getting an LL.B degree the most common and traditional career option available is to enter litigation.
A law graduate can become an Advocate or lawyer wherein his job is to represent his clients in courts (District courts, high courts, and Supreme Court) anywhere in India.
An advocate is treated as a highly-respected profession, and their scope of income is commendable as shown by the likes of Mr. Harish Salve or Late Mr. Ram Jethmalani whose fees for one hearing have been more than the monthly salary paid by an MNC to its majority of employees.
In order to be an advocate and enter litigation, a law graduate must register himself with the bar council of any of the states of his choice and clear the All India bar exam (AIBE).
2. Judicial officers/ Judges:
Judges and magistrates enjoy a special status in any democracy like India. They are the most respected and one of the most powerful people.
Judiciary is the only institution that is free from political interference, due to the constitutionally sanctioned ‘Independence of Judiciary’.
Thus, a judge or a magistrate enjoys complete autonomy in his work without facing any interference from the government’s side.
A law graduate can enter this honorable job either directly by cracking the judicial services examinations conducted by each state individually or by practicing as a lawyer at high courts or Supreme Court from where advocates with exceptional legal skills are directly elevated to the post of Justices.
By way of entrance examinations to there are two distinct levels at which law graduates may conquer positions in Judiciary.
A fresher law graduate is eligible to appear only for lower judicial services examinations conducted by the public service commission of the respective state government, after cracking which he/she becomes a magistrate.
There is one more entrance exam to enter the judiciary which is known as the ‘Higher Judicial Services examination’ conducted by state high courts in their respective states.
The eligibility criterion for this examination is that the applicant must be a practicing lawyer with a minimum experience of 7 years in litigation.
After cracking this examination a law graduate directly becomes ‘District judge’.
3. Lawyer/ Attorneys:
The government at states as well as centers requires Public prosecutors and advocate generals to represent them in courts for which lawyers are hired and attractive pay packages are offered to them.
- Not only at the national level but internationally too, for instance at the International Court of Justice the Government of India requires an Attorney to represent.
- Since crimes are wrongs against the state that’s why in criminal cases the party opposite to the accused is always the state represented by public prosecutors or government advocates in court.
4. Judge Advocate General (Army):
The Indian Army also provides a specialized career opportunity for law graduates. The Army JAG officer is the position in the army that can be filled only by a law graduate.
After clearing all the stages of SSB and medical examination a 49 weeks of training are held at the Officers training academy, Chennai, and finally, the selected law graduates are commissioned in the army with the rank of lieutenant.
The Judge's advocate general acts as the legal and chief judicial officer of the army.
5. Corporate Lawyer:
Nowadays, corporate lawyers have a breathtaking pay scale that is on a constant rise due to an increasingly competitive environment and wants for quality legal experts.
Every corporation whether public or private, small scale or large scale is a separate legal identity that requires a team of legal experts to advise and aid its documentation, paperwork, contracts, and court-related matters.
6. Legal advisor:
All MNCs have a legal department in which lawyers are hired for legal advice to the board of directors.
In the banking sector too, every bank has job positions of legal advisors which can only be filled by law graduates. Almost every Insurance company and bank have lawyers on their panel to legal advice and represent them in court cases against clients.
7. Civil Services:
Civil Services Examination (CSE) conducted by UPSC is the hardest of all examinations in India. This examination requires thorough hard work for years in order to qualify.
It should be noted that ‘Law’ is an optional subject in this examination, the inclusion of law as a subject in the CSE examination acts as a catalyst for law graduates in their preparation because they tend to have prior knowledge of the law, and enhances their chances.
8. Indian Legal Services (future prospects):
The government has cleared its intention on several occasions that it is planning to introduce Indian legal services (ILS), which would be styled like IAS and IPS.
In addition to all these above discussed careers, there are numerous more such as Jurists, Authors of law books, Social worker, Politics etc.
It could be undoubtedly concluded that a law graduate has enormous elite career opportunities to choose from because the law is pervasive to all and a legal expert is requisite everywhere.
A career in Law: Abroad
Here are the career options which the Indian law graduates have abroad:
- Lawyer
- Legal associate in a law firm
For those who haven’t pursued a law degree from the topmost universities in India, this option is more like a fading star to them. There are not many options available for an Indian lawyer abroad but there are several ways you can work around it as the available options offer a good sum of money.
1. Lawyer
If one wishes to become a lawyer in a foreign country, then one will have to do some grade-up courses in law in the country in which they wish to pursue their career.
The Indian Law has been derived from British Law and hence it is to an extent common to the British Law.
So, it is easier to pursue a career in law in the U.K. or any other country, which has a similar law to that of India.
Still, courses are necessary. Also, once you are done with the course in law in any country you will have to register under their Bar so as to become eligible to practice.
2. Law Firm
This is another lucrative job that has been catching every lawyer’s eye nowadays.
The Indian regulations prohibit foreign firms from having an office in India or advising on Indian Law. However, they are doing it with the help of Indian bar and working with Indian Law Firms.
Therefore, such firms are on a hunt for Indian lawyers with dual qualifications- qualifications to work in India and abroad.
With the help of these lawyers, they are able to take up more work coming out of or related to India.
Also, India has a Common Law System, under which the law is created and/or refined by judges and a decision in the case currently pending depends on decisions in previous cases and affects the law to be applied in future cases.
This system is followed by a lot of countries that trace their legal heritage to Britain, including the United Kingdom and the United States.
Another reason is that Indian students are proficient in English and their legal skills are at par with their global counterparts on the other side of the globe.
And because the growing international trade and WTO regulations will lead to the opening up of legal systems across the world, the law firms are preparing for it.
Another way to work your way up to these foreign law firms is by doing an L.L.M. degree from abroad. This will upgrade the value of one’s law degree and one will be at par with other foreign law students if they wish to deal in foreign matters.
Lawyers have always played a significant role in any country and if one is good at law he can conquer the world with his skills.
Several great men and women in India and abroad have pursued a law degree and achieved great heights in their lives and not just by being a lawyer.
There are writers, leaders, politicians, and freedom fighters who have had a law degree before becoming what they are. But this doesn’t mean that everyone who pursues law avails such out-of-the-line careers. It is more of a matter of interest than choice.
The sole intention of this example is that the knowledge, insight, and ability that one achieves after pursuing a law degree can take one to places.
==========================================
Comments
write a comment