The Bar Council of India (BCI) has informed the Supreme Court that it has introduced long-awaited changes to the All India Bar Examination (AIBE), allowing final-semester law students to appear for the test and confirming that the examination will now be held twice each year. The move addresses a long-standing concern raised by law students about the loss of crucial time between completing law school and beginning legal practice.
According to a report by PTI, the BCI told the court that it has framed rules permitting students in the final semester of their LLB course to sit for the AIBE, provided they successfully clear their final university examinations. A Bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta noted the submission and disposed of the petition filed in 2024.
The case arose from objections to a BCI notification that prevented final-year LLB students from taking the AIBE because they had not formally graduated. The petitioners argued that this restriction caused more than a procedural delay. Clearing the AIBE is mandatory for enrolment with a state bar council, and missing an examination cycle often meant waiting several months, or even an entire year, before beginning legal practice.
The plea highlighted that barring final-semester students from the exam resulted in a direct loss of valuable time at a critical stage of their professional lives.
The Supreme Court has encountered this issue repeatedly. In 2024, it passed interim directions allowing final-year students to take that year’s AIBE. Earlier, in 2023, it had instructed the BCI to frame clear rules to resolve the problem on a permanent basis.
On September 20, 2024, the court took a firm stance, directing the BCI to permit final-year LLB students to appear for the examination. It observed that students at the end of their course should not be left without options and noted that denying them the chance to sit the exam would effectively cost them a year.
The court’s remarks reflected a practical concern: regulatory technicalities should not disrupt the transition from education to employment.
As per the PTI report, the BCI’s counsel told the court that the new BCI Rules, 2026, now formally allow final-semester students to take the AIBE. The condition remains that their eligibility will depend on passing their final university examinations. The change adjusts the timing of the process without diluting academic or professional standards.
The Supreme Court had earlier, on February 10, 2023, upheld the BCI’s authority to conduct the AIBE. It also accepted a suggestion from an amicus curiae that final-semester students could be allowed to appear for the exam on submission of appropriate proof of eligibility.
The court has also granted individual relief. PTI reported that it considered submissions made by advocates A Velan and Navpreet Kaur on behalf of nine LLB students, including Nilay Rai of Delhi University, and permitted them to take the AIBE held on November 24, 2024.
