On 7 December 2025, the Common Law Admission Test for Post-Graduate Studies (CLAT PG) was conducted for the academic year 2026-27. With an impressive 17000+ registered students taking the exam, the excitement was high, and the stakes were raised. However, some students struggled with longer questions, making it difficult to complete the entire paper.
But what no one saw coming was that, for the first time, questions (6 passages) from the previous year’s CLAT PG 2025 paper appeared directly in the exam. In this blog, we will examine this year's CLAT PG Exam 2026 in more detail!
Overview of CLAT PG 2026 Question Paper
Same Pattern as last year
The 2026 CLAT PG paper followed the same pattern as the previous years (CLAT PG 2025, CLAT PG 2024), featuring 120 questions divided into 24 passages, each containing 5 questions, making the paper over 40 pages long.
Surprising element
A. Some cases and passages were repeated from last year, like Bangalore Water Supply (1978) and Vishal Tiwari (2024).
B. The International Law passages were tougher than expected and needed extra time to understand.
C. Only about 3-4 questions came directly from the Bare Acts, such as Section 96 of the Transfer of Property Act and Sections 74 and 28 of the Contract Act.
Level of Difficulty
Overall, the paper was moderate, but because it was so long, it was tough for students to finish all the questions.
Optimal Attempts
Given the lengthy question paper and time constraints, it was ideal for students to aim to answer between 85 to 95 questions.
Types of Questions
Some questions were based on the passage, and candidates could often solve them by eliminating incorrect options. Most questions in the exam were straightforward, asking for factual information (more than 50% of questions were concept-based) rather than requiring deep analytical thinking. The questions included passage-based, provision-based and judgment-based inquiries.
This is a breakdown of the types of questions asked in the CLAT PG 2026 paper:-
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Types of Questions
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No. of Questions in CLAT PG 2026
|
|
Passage-based
|
10
|
|
Concept-based
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83 (including questions asking the name of landmark judgments)
|
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Judgment-based
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27
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Want to get all your CLAT PG 2026 questions answered? Check out the CLAT PG Exam Guide now.
No out-of-syllabus questions
The CLAT PG 2025 paper maintained its syllabus pattern, staying strictly within the prescribed subjects.
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CLAT PG 2026 Subject-Wise Passage Breakdown
Download the CLAT PG 2026 Question Paper from here.
| S.No. |
Subject
|
Passage Topic
|
Passage From?
|
Repeat?
|
Question Type
|
| 1. |
Constitution
|
Constitutional Tort (2011)
|
Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhi v. Uphaar Tragedy Victims Association, 2011
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
President’s Pardoning Power (2014)
|
Shatrughan Chauhan v. Union of India, 2014
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
4 concept-based, 1 judgment-based
|
|
AMU Case (2024)
|
Aligarh Muslim University v. Naresh Agarwal & Ors, 2024
|
No
|
4 concept-based, 1 judgment-based
|
|
In the Constitutional Law section, students did not need to recall detailed facts or final outcomes of cases like Shatrughan Chauhan v. Union of India. What actually mattered was a clear understanding of how constitutional powers operate.
The questions were largely doctrine-centric, especially in passages based on the Municipal Corporation of Delhi v. Uphaar Tragedy Victims Association case. Even though CLAT is often said to focus on recent judgments, this paper showed that landmark cases can still be tested through core concepts, without asking judgment-specific details.
There was nothing to worry about if your concepts were strong. The paper avoided factual traps and instead tested doctrines such as constitutional tort and minority educational institutions.
Takeaway: Conceptual clarity mattered more than mugging up case facts in Constitutional Law.
|
| 2. |
Contract
|
Breach of Contract (2025)
|
Consolidated Construction Consortium Limited v. Software Technology
Parks of India, 2025
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
Exclusive Jurisdiction (2025)
|
Rakesh Kumar Verma v. HDFC Bank Ltd, 2025
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
The Contract Law questions were largely conceptual, especially around Section 74 of the Contract Act, which deals with remedies and compensation for breach of contract. Even if a student did not remember the exact section number, the passage itself explained the provision clearly. All that was required was the correct application of the principle.
Takeaway: Strong basics and smart option elimination were enough to score well in Contract Law.
|
| 3. |
Tort
|
Negligence (2024)
|
Neeraj Sud v. Jaswinder Singh, 2024
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
The Tort Law section was straightforward and based purely on negligence concepts. Students who had covered judgments from the past 3 years found these questions easy to solve, as the principles tested were familiar and directly applied.
Takeaway: Recent judgments plus clear negligence basics were more than enough for this section.
|
| 4. |
Environment
|
Environmental Impact Assessment (2025)
|
Vanashakti v. Union of India, 2025
|
No
|
3 judgment-based, 2 concept-based
|
| Takeaway: Staying updated with recent environmental judgments paid off here. |
| 5. |
Corporate Law
|
SEBI (2024)
|
Vishal Tiwari v. Union of India, 2024
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
Company Law / IBC (2023)
|
Moser Baer Karamchari Union v. Union of India, 2023
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
| 6. |
Jurisprudence
|
Utilitarianism
|
Jeremy Bentham, 'The Psychology of Economic Man,' and Behavioural Economics
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
Rights & Duties (Hohfeld)
|
Extracted from Arthur L Corbin, Rights and Duties, 1923
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
| Takeaway: Regular PYP practice made Jurisprudence scoring and stress-free. |
| 7. |
International Law
|
UNFCCC
|
From the website UNFCCC.INT
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
International Law Commission
|
Principles of International Law
|
No
|
All 5 were judgment-based
|
|
UNO
|
The UN as an organisation. A critique of its functioning by Maurice Bertrand
|
No
|
All 5 were passage-based
|
|
International Law turned out to be one of the toughest sections in the paper. After Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Jurisprudence, and Corporate Law, this subject received unexpectedly high weightage, even more than Corporate and Criminal Law in this year’s exam.
The passages were reading-heavy and time-consuming, and many questions required strong familiarity with international charters. Topics like the Paris Agreement, the Charter of the Nuremberg Tribunal, and the International Law Commission (ILC) proved challenging for students who had not revised these in detail.
Takeaway: International Law was high-weightage, reading-intensive, and demanded solid charter knowledge to score well.
|
| 8. |
Administrative Law
|
Tribunal / Judicial Review (1993)
|
R.K. Jain v. Union of India, 1993
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
| 9. |
Labour Law
|
Industrial Disputes Act (1978)
|
Bangalore Water Supply v. A. Rajappa & Others, 1978
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
3 judgment-based, 2 concept-based
|
|
Factories Act (2025)
|
The State of Goa v. Namita Tripathi, 2025
|
No
|
1 passage-based, 2 concept-based, 2 judgment-based
|
| Labour Law once again focused heavily on the Industrial Disputes Act and the Factories Act. The paper also tested concepts from the Factories Act through a very recent judgment, making it important for students to stay updated with new case law. |
| 10. |
Transfer of Property Act
|
Gift Deed (2025)
|
NP Saseendran v. NP Ponnamma, 2025
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
Mortgage (2014)
|
State of Haryana v. Narvir Singh, 2014
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
The TPA questions mainly revolved around gift, settlement, and mortgage. The key challenge was distinguishing between similar concepts rather than remembering section numbers.
A simple approach worked well here: instead of getting stuck on sections, students just needed to ask one basic question — when does the right in the property actually pass?
Takeaway: Conceptual clarity on the transfer of rights made TPA questions easy to crack.
|
| 11. |
Criminal Law
|
Review Petition – CrPC (2025)
|
Vikram Bakshi v. RP Khosla 2025
|
No
|
1 passage-based, 4 judgment-based
|
|
Extortion – IPC (2025)
|
Balaji Traders v. State of UP, 2025
|
No
|
2 passage-based, 3 judgment-based
|
|
Although the passages were based on judgments, the questions were largely conceptual. One set tested understanding of reference, review, and revision, concepts that are clearly explained under the BNSS.
The other set of questions focused on extortion under Section 387 IPC, which again required clear conceptual understanding rather than memorising case facts.
|
| 12. |
Family Law
|
Child Inheritance & Succession (2023)
|
Revanasiddappa & Anr v. Mallikarjun, 2023
|
No
|
All 5 were concept-based
|
|
Live-in Relationship & Others (2013)
|
Indra Sarma v. V.K. v. Sarma, 2013
|
Yes (2025 PG)
|
1 passage-based, 4 concept-based
|
|
The Family Law questions focused mainly on the Hindu Succession Act, especially the right to property, legitimacy of children, and whether such property would vest as coparcenary property.
Takeaway: Strong basics in succession law and regular PYP practice made this section manageable.
|
| 13. |
Taxation
|
Transfer of Capital Asset (2025)
|
Principal Commissioner of Income Tax v. Jupiter Capital Pvt Ltd., 2025
|
No
|
All 5 were judgment-based
|
| Taxation carried very low weightage, with only one passage in the paper. All questions were based on a recent judgment, making this section fairly predictable for students who had kept up with current case law. |
Final Takeaway for CLAT PG 2027 Aspirants
CLAT PG 2026 clearly signals: a. Focus on concept clarity, b. Revise previous year passages thoroughly, c.Master recent Supreme Court judgments (2023–2025), d. Build reading stamina—knowledge alone isn’t enough
Important Dates for CLAT PG 2026
|
SL. No.
|
Particulars
|
Tentative Date
|
|
1
|
Date of the Test
|
7 December 2025
|
|
2
|
Publication of the Provisional Answer Key
|
10 December 2025 at 5 PM
|
|
3
|
Inviting Objections to the Question Paper and the Provisional Answer Key
|
5:00 PM on 10th December 2025 to 5:00 PM on 12th December 2025
|
|
4
|
Publication of the Final Answer Key
|
16th December, 2025 |
|
5
|
Publication of the CLAT 2026 Results
|
16th December, 2025 |
|
6
|
Registration for Admissions Counselling
|
Opened at 6:00 P.M, on December 17, 2025 and Closed at 10:00 P.M. on December 27, 2025 |
|
7
|
Publication of First Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
8
|
Payment of Confirmation Fee to Consortium for Freeze to Float options and Admission by NLUs
|
To be updated soon
|
|
9
|
Publication of Second Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
10
|
Payment of Confirmation Fee to Consortium for Freeze and Float options and Admission by NLUs
|
To be updated soon
|
|
11
|
Publication of Third Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
12
|
Payment of Confirmation Fee to Consortium for Freeze and Float options and Admission by NLUs
|
To be updated soon
|
|
13
|
Payment of University Fee (after adjusting for Confirmation Fee and Counselling Registration Fee) to NLU concerned for all candidates who have chosen the Freeze Option in the counselling process for First, Second & Third Allotment Lists (first, second & third rounds of counselling)
|
To be updated soon
|
|
14
|
Publication of Fourth Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
15
|
Payment of Confirmation Fee to Consortium for Freeze, Float options and Admission by NLUs for the Fourth Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
16
|
Publication of Fifth and Final Allotment List (Fifth round of counselling starts)
|
To be updated soon
|
|
17
|
Payment of Confirmation Fee to Consortium for Freeze option and Admission by NLUs for the Fifth and final Allotment List
|
To be updated soon
|
|
18
|
Payment of University Fee (after adjusting for Confirmation Fee and Counselling Registration Fee) to NLU concerned for all candidates who have chosen the Freeze Option in the counselling process of Fourth & Fifth Allotment Lists (fourth & fifth rounds of counselling)
|
To be updated soon
|
To know the key case laws for CLAT PG 2026, check the Top 25 Supreme Court Judgments of 2025.
FAQs related to CLAT PG 2026
Q.1. What is a good score in CLAT PG 2026?
As per last year's trends, a good score in CLAT PG 2026 is 85+ marks for admission into top NLUs.
Q.2. Is the CLAT 2026 answer key released?
The provisional answer key will be released on the 10th of December at consortiumofnlus.ac.in, or you can see it directly from here.
Q.3. What is the cutoff CLAT PG 2026?
Expected Cutoffs of CLAT PG 2026
| Tier 1 NLUs |
85 to 104 marks |
| Tier 2 NLUs |
70 to 85 marks |
| Tier 3 NLUs |
60 to 70 marks |
Q.4. Are there any repeated topics in CLAT PG 2026?
Yes, some topics, such as the President’s pardoning power, SEBI, and the Industrial Disputes Act, were asked as they are from the CLAT PG 2025 paper.
Q.5. Was CLAT PG 2026 tough?
The CLAT PG 26 exam was rated as moderate by many candidates. The paper felt lengthy, and a lot of students could not attempt all the questions.
Q.6. What was the highest mark secured in CLAT PG 2026?
The highest mark secured in CLAT 2026 PG is 104.25 out of 119 (one question was withdrawn).