Skip to content

MAH CET Law

Evidence status: 🟢 official. Every number below is from the State CET Cell's information brochures for MAH-LL.B. 3 Yrs. CET 2026 and MAH-LL.B. 5 Yrs. CET 2026 (academic year 2026-27) and the public notice on the updated marking scheme, fetched from cetcell.mahacet.org on 2026-10-01.

MAH CET Law is Maharashtra's online entrance for admission to the three-year LLB and the five-year integrated law programmes (BBA-LLB, BLS-LLB, BA-LLB and similar) in government, aided and unaided colleges affiliated to the state's non-agricultural universities. The two programmes have separate tests, brochures and schedules.

At a glance
Conducted by State CET Cell, Maharashtra (Commissioner, State CET Cell is the competent authority)
Mode Online (computer-based), at centres in Maharashtra only
Tests Separate CETs for 3-year LLB and 5-year integrated LLB
3-year LLB CET 2026 120 questions, 120 marks, 2 hours (120 minutes), no negative marking
5-year LLB CET 2026 120 questions, 120 marks, 2 hours (120 minutes), no negative marking
2026 cycle (per brochures) 3-year CET on 01–02.04.2026 (tentative); 5-year CET on 08.05.2026 (tentative)
Qualification 3-year: any bachelor's degree (10+2+3 pattern); 5-year: 10+2 (HSC) or 3-year engineering diploma
Minimum marks 45% aggregate for Open/SEBC/EWS/OMS; 42% for VJNT/SBC/OBC (Maharashtra); 40% for SC/ST (Maharashtra)
Age No upper age limit for the 2026-27 cycle (subject to pending court cases); if a limit is imposed, 30 / 35 years (3-year) and 20 / 22 years (5-year), as on 01.07.2026
CET fee Rs. 1300 (Open/OMS/J&K migrant); Rs. 1000 (Maharashtra backward classes, orphan, transgender, PWD)

Official sources

Exam pattern

Both tests are a single online computer-based examination of objective multiple-choice questions with four options. Each question carries 1 mark, there is no negative marking, questions are set in English and Marathi, and the time allowed is 2 hours (120 minutes). If an examination is conducted in multiple shifts, the State CET Cell applies percentile-based normalization across sessions.

3-year LLB (120 questions, 120 marks):

Section Questions Marks
Legal Aptitude and Legal Reasoning 24 24
General Knowledge with Current Affairs 32 32
Logical and Analytical Reasoning 24 24
English 40 40

5-year integrated LLB (120 questions, 120 marks):

Section Questions Marks
Legal Aptitude and Legal Reasoning 32 32
General Knowledge with Current Affairs 24 24
Logical and Analytical Reasoning 32 32
English 24 24
Basic Mathematics (Mathematical Aptitude) 8 8

The brochures schedule the 3-year CET 2026 on 1 and 2 April 2026 and the 5-year CET 2026 on 8 May 2026, both marked tentative and run online in multiple sessions where needed, at centres in Maharashtra only. Entry is strictly per the date and session on the hall ticket. Registration for the 2026 cycle was 08–23.01.2026 (3-year) and 09–24.01.2026 (5-year). The next cycle's brochure is awaited on the official site.

Syllabus

As listed in section 11 of each information brochure and the updated marking scheme notice, in the State CET Cell's own topic descriptions:

  • Legal Aptitude and Legal Reasoning (24 marks in 3-yr, 32 marks in 5-yr): tests interest towards the study of law, legal aptitude, and problem-solving ability. Questions are framed using legal prepositions (principles) and a set of facts to which the prepositions must be applied; candidates must assume the given prepositions to be strictly true and draw well-supported conclusions. The section primarily tests:
  • Indian Constitutional Law & Institutions: Preamble, Fundamental Rights (Articles 14, 19, 21, 21A), Directive Principles (Part IV), Fundamental Duties (Article 51A), and Judicial Review & Writs (Articles 32 and 226). Candidates must master landmark principles:
    • Writ Jurisdiction (Art 32 vs Art 226): High Courts under Article 226 have a wider scope than the Supreme Court under Article 32 because High Courts can issue writs for fundamental rights as well as any other legal right (L. Chandra Kumar v. Union of India, 1997). Article 32 remedies also structurally connect to the Directive Principle of equal justice and free legal aid under Article 39A.
    • Personal Liberty and Due Process (Art 21): Following Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978), "procedure established by law" must be just, fair, and reasonable, incorporating substantive due process and the administrative law rule of natural justice (audi alteram partem), expanding beyond older literal procedural interpretations. Article 21 also extends to the right to livelihood (Olga Tellis v. Bombay Municipal Corporation, 1985).
    • Basic Structure Doctrine: Parliament's amending power under Article 368 is constitutionally limited and cannot damage the basic structure or destroy judicial review under Article 13(2) (Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, 1973).
    • Right to Education Triad (Art 21A): Introduced by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act (2002), connecting the Fundamental Right under Article 21A (ages 6–14) with DPSP Article 45 (early childhood care) and Fundamental Duty Article 51A(k).
  • Law of Torts: Strict and absolute liability (Rylands v. Fletcher), vicarious liability (master-servant relationship within course of employment), negligence, nuisance, and general defences (volenti non fit injuria, act of God).
  • Law of Contracts: Essentials of a valid agreement (offer, acceptance, lawful consideration, free consent), capacity to contract (minor agreements void ab initio), and remedies for breach.
  • Criminal Law / Penal Provisions: Actus reus and mens rea, general exceptions (private defence, accident, necessity, infancy), and offences against person and property.
  • General Knowledge with Current Affairs (32 marks in 3-yr, 24 marks in 5-yr): topics include History (Ancient, Medieval, and Modern), Geography, General Science, Economics, Civics, and Current Affairs of the past one year to assess awareness of recent world events.
  • Logical and Analytical Reasoning (24 marks in 3-yr, 32 marks in 5-yr): tests the ability to identify patterns, logical links, and rectify illogical arguments. Includes analogies, completing arguments, drawing well-supported conclusions, reasoning by analogy, applying principles or rules, understanding relationships, and deductive reasoning from statements describing relationships among persons, things, or events.
  • English (40 marks in 3-yr, 24 marks in 5-yr): Vocabulary (synonyms, antonyms, analogies), Proficiency (idioms and phrases, one-word substitution, sentence improvement and rearrangement, fill in the blanks), English Usage Errors (common errors, spotting errors, inappropriate usage of words, spelling mistakes), and English Comprehension (minimum two passages followed by 5 to 10 questions testing reading comprehension and reasoning abilities).
  • Basic Mathematics / Mathematical Aptitude (5-year only, 8 marks): numerical ability at 10th-standard level — Profit and Loss, Speed and Distance, Time and Work, Algebra, Average, and Venn Diagrams.

Eligibility (must be Indian nationals/citizens): 3-year needs a bachelor's degree in any faculty on the 10+2+3 pattern (final-year appearing candidates may apply but join only on producing all mark lists); 5-year needs 10+2, with 3-year engineering diploma holders accepted on producing an equivalence certificate. Minimum aggregate marks are 45% (Open, SEBC, EWS, OMS/All-India), 42% (VJNT, SBC, OBC of Maharashtra) and 40% (SC, ST of Maharashtra); rounding (44.50–44.99% is not 45%) is decided per the brochure rule upheld by the Bombay High Court in 2019. Both papers have no upper age limit for A.Y. 2026-27, a position that rests on writ petitions pending before the Supreme Court (WP (Civil) 1023/2016) and the Bombay High Court (WP 3235/2016); if a limit is imposed it would be 30 years (Open) and 35 years (SC, ST of Maharashtra) for the 3-year paper, and 20 years (Open, EWS) and 22 years (SC, ST of Maharashtra) for the 5-year paper, counted as on 1 July 2026.

How to prepare (free, in order)

  1. Master Legal Aptitude and Proposition-Fact Mechanics First:
  2. Legal aptitude carries 24 marks (3-year) or 32 marks (5-year) and requires no prior legal degree, but demands strict adherence to the stated principle. Never import external knowledge to contradict the given preposition; assume the rule is absolute and follow its logical outcome.
  3. Master the core constitutional framework: Fundamental Rights (Articles 14 to 32), DPSPs, Fundamental Duties, and basic structure doctrine. Guard against recurring conceptual traps: remember that High Court writ jurisdiction under Article 226 is wider in subject scope than the Supreme Court's under Article 32, and Article 21 requires substantive fairness, not merely formal enactment.
  4. Build Tort, Contract, and Criminal Law Foundations:
  5. Learn the core doctrines that govern principle-fact questions: strict liability, vicarious liability, volenti non fit injuria, contract formation (offer, acceptance, consideration, minor capacity), and penal defences (right of private defence).
  6. Practice Logical and Analytical Reasoning in Timed Sets:
  7. 24 marks (3-year) or 32 marks (5-year). Focus on coding-decoding, blood relations, syllogisms, direction sense, linear/circular arrangements, and critical reasoning (assumptions, conclusions, strengthening/weakening arguments). Aim for 45–50 seconds per question.
  8. Target English Language and Comprehension (High Weightage):
  9. In the 3-year CET, English is the largest single component (40 marks, one-third of the total); in the 5-year CET, it is 24 marks.
  10. Read an editorial column daily to build reading speed for comprehension passages (minimum two passages per paper, followed by 5–10 inference questions).
  11. Drill grammar fundamentals (spotting errors, sentence correction, subject-verb agreement) and vocabulary (synonyms, antonyms, idioms and phrases, one-word substitutions).
  12. Systematic General Knowledge and Current Affairs:
  13. 32 marks (3-year) or 24 marks (5-year). Current affairs covers the preceding 12 months: focus on legal developments, Supreme Court constitutional bench rulings, major legislation, national policy announcements, and international milestones using Press Information Bureau (PIB) releases.
  14. Revise static GK (Indian history, geography, civics/polity, and elementary economics) through NCERT Class 6–10 textbooks.
  15. Basic Mathematics (5-year Integrated LLB Only, 8 Marks):
  16. Numerical ability is tested only in the 5-year CET for 8 marks. Revise standard Class 10 arithmetic: percentages, profit and loss, ratio and proportion, speed-distance-time, time and work, averages, and Venn diagrams. Keep preparation time aligned with its modest weightage.
  17. Full-Length Mock Testing and Zero-Penalty Pacing:
  18. Both tests have 120 questions for 120 marks in 120 minutes with no negative marking.
  19. Pacing target is exactly 1 minute per question. Attempt every question; never leave blanks.
  20. Use the official candidate mock test link released on cetcell.mahacet.org before the examination to familiarize yourself with the online interface and session timer.

Free resources