The National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) has, in the short span of a decade since its inception in 1998, established itself as the touchstone of excellence in Indian legal education. The unprecedented success of NALSAR is pivoted primarily around the institution of a comprehensive, rigorous and distinctive structure of pedagogy which, alongside the imparting of knowledge, inculcates a commitment towards academic pursuits in, and imposes steep standards of achievement upon individuals, thereby ensuring the distinguishable caliber of the students of NALSAR as legal professionals and practitioners. The structure of pedagogy in NALSAR is factored on four elements.

Socratic Method

NALSAR has rejected the concept of lectures in favor of the dialectic as the basis of pedagogy. The conventionally accepted role of the faculty is remodeled as repositories of qualified and experienced tutelage, as well as facilitators of constructive dialogue, who encourage enquiry, debate and the independent formulation of informed opinion.

Experience

As a graded unit of their clinical training, students of NALSAR are expected to undergo a minimum of four internships with legal institutions, associations and individuals. While exploration of diverse avenues and fora within the legal structure is encouraged, there is a prevalent inclination towards the commercial-corporate sector, on account of which, students of NALSAR derive considerable theoretical, as well as practical legal acumen.

Curriculum

The curriculum under the five-year undergraduate program is prolific, to speak the least, comprising within its ambit a multitude of courses spanning the scope of Law in its entirety, whether within the public or private sphere, substantive or procedural.

Emphasis on Presentation and Research

Acknowledging the significance of skills of verbal presentation and researc h in the legal profession, the NALSAR curriculum requires each student to undertake 46 research papers pertinent to mandatory curricular courses and 3 dissertations. Furthermore, as a corollary to the same, 49 verbal presentation sessions, which include viva voce, are necessarily conducted for every student.

Professional Orientation

Without compromising on the versatility or comprehensiveness of its curriculum, and maintaining the allowance of independence vis-à-vis diverse professional pursuits, the approach of NALSAR to legal education has maintained a noticeable undercurrent towards commercial legal practice in all its myriad manifestations, including but not limited to corporate affairs, taxation, intellectual property law and capital market regulations, which is the distinctive advantage of its students from the perspective of recruitment in this sector. Students from NALSAR consequently, are ideal/prime candidates for recruitment in any segment of the corporate sector, taking into consideration the particular grooming they undergo, based essentially on three aspects.