Law Optional Strategy - By Alok Kumar Ranjan, Head master, Ambitions Law Institute

Q. Who should choose Law as an optional?

Ans. The Law Optional has a high success rate. Not only students from law backgrounds, but also from non-law backgrounds choose law as their optional subject as it is based on common sense and logic. It can be understood only if right approach and strategy is adopted to study the subject. There is myth that it is all about sections and cases which are groundless and baseless opinions. It has a success rate as high as 24.3%, which is higher than all other optional subjects. It is perhaps because of this that even non-law graduates now opt for the Law Optional in the mains exam.

Q. What are the criteria for choosing Law Optional?

Ans. Some of the factors to keep in mind before selecting an optional are:

• Interest in the subject
• Overlap with the GS papers
• Availability of coaching
• Availability of study material

On these parameters, Law as an optional stands out today as it is very interesting which raises new questions and seeks answers from us.

• It overlaps with G.S. Polity too much and international affair questions has many common things in International law. Current legal development in form of Right to Information (RTI), Media Trial, Environment, Copy Right, Public Interest Litigation (PIL), Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) are all very important topics in current affairs.

Q. What is its success ratio in UPSC CSE? On an average, how many candidates appear with this subject?

Ans. Success rate has been exceptional - up to 24% - but even if it has been on lower side as 11 to 12%, it is quite high in proportion to other subjects. Law is natural subject for administrators and it should have been a compulsory paper in exam.

• In some years, it had success rate about 12-15% in comparison to other optional in UPSC exam.
• However, there was a time when this optional’s success rate has reached up to 24%.
• Looking at the data for the past eight years (from UPSC Annual Reports), it can be safely concluded that law optional have been consistent performer. You can verify each data.

Q. Is it a safe optional?

Ans. Yes, it is safe to take Law optional as there are many advantages:

• Law is a subject which everyone has to know as an officer or administrator as one can’t run government without learning and understanding law.
• Law is a very basic thing. Everybody (and especially if you are preparing for UPSC) has some understanding of the fundamentals of law, like what is right, what is wrong, etc.
• UPSC doesn’t expect you to be experts in law. You don’t need to be a law graduate to opt for the law optional in the IAS mains.
• It is a scoring subject.
• It is interesting and you can learn a lot about law by reading newspapers and following cases in the news.
• The papers are application-based and so you don’t have to do a lot of mugging up.
• There is a lot of overlap with the General Studies paper, especially in Polity and Constitution.
• Topics like governance issues, RTI, citizen-official interface, the exercise of discretion, the relationship between organs of state, etc. have significance for the GS papers.
• The UPSC syllabus for law optional is limited and can be covered in a relatively short time, within three months.
• Many social and economic issues should be viewed from the legal angle as well and law students find this easy. So, studying law helps in general studies, essay paper, ethics paper and also in the IAS interview.
• The questions are predictable and have been repeated too.
• UPSC avoids tough portions of the law like taxation laws and Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

Q. How to start preparation?

Ans. Law is the most predictable part of an otherwise highly unpredictable exam. Thus, it requires a calculative and smart strategy to leverage its advantages to the maximum. It is further advisable to take assistance of an experienced mentor for better approach and time-saving.

Strategy for Preparation

• First jot down all important areas of questions of one subject at a time on the basis of previous years' questions and currently relevant issues.
• Then prepare notes on those topics along with headings and synopsis which will help you to recall the ideas easily.
• Answer writing is not a matter of form rather it is matter of substance. Without understanding the concepts of Law, you cannot write good answer. So, one must focus on ABC (Accuracy, Brevity, Clarity). Accuracy refers to understanding the target question, brevity expects one to write briefly and clarity is all about clear concept which is major problem of even LL.B. Students as they think that they have understood law. Knowledge of law and doing LL.B. and understanding of law are altogether different aspects.
• The main focus should be on consolidation of the content in the form of short notes, while keeping in mind the answer-writing which should focus not only on content but also on conceptual clarity.

Q. What are the things that need to be kept in mind while preparing for it? What is the ideal approach to prepare this subject?

Ans. Things to remember while preparing for Law Optional (UPSC exam)

• In Paper I, the important parts are Constitutional and Administrative Law. It is dynamic in the nature in the sense it has many current issues based questions relating to legal awareness and understanding of issues. So, it is a predictable paper.
• In Paper II, it is more traditional in Contract, Tort, IPC but contemporary development of law requires understanding and awareness of current happening in these areas.
• Prepare Yourself Mentally: I think it is more mental or psychological preparation rather than physical. Make yourself determined, and positive about outcome.
• Prepare Timetable: Making a timetable will make your preparation easy and keep you on toes as you have targets and goals in time-frame. It works wonderfully if done seriously.
• Know the Syllabus: The syllabus is the soul of any exam and the soul of syllabus is previous years' questions. So scan it carefully, cautiously to understand nuances of exam.
• Newspaper Reading/Current Affairs for IAS: It is very important to follow the relevant legal news items in your daily newspaper, which is bound to appear in exam directly or indirectly.

Basic Readings

The NCERT textbooks from class six to twelve play a very significant role in IAS exam preparation, as they lay foundation of general studies.

Making Notes along with Synopsis

It helps to keep track of the portions covered and also serves as a ready-reckoner for revision, in quick time.

Practice Answer Writing

Examiner can know your potential through your writing only so, it is strongly recommended that you primarily keep in mind conceptual clarity along with content enrichment so that, your answer should be qualitatively and quantitatively rich as well.

• It is mainly about testing your analytical, critical, and communicative abilities. It demands you to think with conceptual clarity and organize your views, perceptions, and thoughts in a flawless manner.

Solving Previous Years' Questions

Previous question papers are the best guide to tell you the nature and character of questions, frequently asked question and how question arises from current content.

Facing Mock Test Piously

Mock test helps civil service aspirants in realizing and learning from mistakes, shaping what approach they need to follow in continuing the preparation and identifying problems and seeking solutions.

• Attempt questions in exam conditions and without any help.
• Writing answers leisurely and at home does not help that much.

Refer Reliable Sources

Naturally, there are many government sources you can rely on during your preparation.

• Government websites like the PIB, PRS, and national television programmes featured on the Rajya Sabha TV are very helpful.
• Magazines like Yojana, Kurukshetra, Economic & Political Weekly, etc. are very important for the IAS exam.

Revision

Revision is very important when you are facing an exam as tough as the UPSC exam.

UPSC Interview

As mentioned before, the final stage in the UPSC exam process is the UPSC interview or Personality Test. You will be assessed on qualities such as diplomatic skills, communication skills, etc.

Q. Which books can be referred for it? Are study materials available for it?

Ans. Students can refer to the following:

Books and Resources

There are many good books available in the market but the problem is how to find what to study from the book and what not, so, it is advisable to study from study material and the best material is there with Ambition Law Institute which has been training students for last 21 years and its students have got best marks in law optional time and again.

Books for Law Optional (Paper I)

• The Constitution of India – Ambition Publication & Bare Act
• An Introduction to Public International Law – S. K. Verma
• Constitution of India – V. N Shukla/ M.P. Jain
• Administrative Law – I.P. Massey

Books for Law Optional (Paper II)

• Indian Penal Code – PSA Pillai
• Principles of Mercantile Law – Avtar Singh
• Law of Tort – R.K. Bangia
• Other subjects like:
  • Partnership, SOGA, NI Act, etc. Ambition Publications Bare Act Negotiable Instrument- Ambition Publications Bare Act
  • Sale of Goods – Ambition Publications Bare Act

Q. Is quality guidance available for it?

Ans. Yes, to provide high quality and relevant education and training to meet the requirement of the modern era competitive exams standard so that the aspirants from any segment of society could have full confidence about any exam in legal sphere at lowest cost.

Ambition Law Institute is seriously committed to its mission to provide the finest legal education and to prepare the next generation of leaders, and for your convenience many lectures of IPC, Constitution, Contract, and Partnership are uploaded on Youtube channel of Ambition Law Institute, which shares the approach and strategy to study the different papers and subjects of law.

Q. Will it help in General Studies/ Essay/Interview also?

Ans. Many social and economic issues should be viewed from the legal angle as well and law. So, studying Law helps in general studies, essay paper, ethics paper and also in the IAS interview.