CLAT PG cheat sheet

Article 13(2) bars State laws abridging Part III rights; a constitutional amendment is not 'law' under Article 13 (Kesavananda, 1973), but amendments violating the basic structure are void (Minerva Mills, 1980).

Basic structure indicia recognised so far: supremacy of the Constitution, republican and democratic form of government, secular character, separation of powers, federalism, judicial review, free and fair elections, rule of law, and individual dignity.

Article 21 protection now includes rights to privacy (Puttaswamy, 2017), a clean environment, speedy trial, legal aid, livelihood and dignity; deprivation must satisfy fair, just and reasonable procedure.

Article 19(6) permits reasonable restrictions in the interests of the general public; State monopoly is valid (state trading) but a monopoly that is not in the public interest can fail Article 19(1)(g).

Article 14 forbids class legislation but permits reasonable classification resting on an intelligible differentia with a rational nexus to the object of the statute; the manifest arbitrariness test supplements Article 14.

Article 32 is itself a fundamental right (Article 32(2) empowers the Supreme Court to issue writs); Article 226 High Court jurisdiction is wider and discretionary but not a fundamental right.

Article 368 procedure: a Bill must be passed by a special majority in each House; federal provisions in the proviso also require ratification by half of the State legislatures before presentation to the President.

Doctrine of pleasure (Article 310) is subject to Article 311 safeguards: no dismissal, removal or reduction in rank without inquiry and reasonable opportunity of hearing, except in specified exclusions.

Article 12 'State' includes government, Parliament, State legislatures, local authorities and other authorities; a body is an 'other authority' if it has a public function or deep and pervasive State control (Ajay Hasia criteria).

Natural justice has two core rules: audi alteram partem (right to notice, hearing and reasoned consideration) and nemo judex in causa sua (no personal interest; bias may be personal, pecuniary or official).

Delegated legislation is invalid if ultra vires the parent Act, unconstitutional, unreasonable, or if it sub-delegates without authority; conditional legislation and conditional legislation by reference differ from true delegation.

Grounds for judicial review of administrative action: illegality (acting without or beyond jurisdiction), irrationality (Wednesbury unreasonableness and proportionality), and procedural impropriety (GCHQ case).

Wednesbury unreasonableness: a decision so absurd that no sensible person could have reached it; proportionality is applied where fundamental rights are engaged.

Doctrine of legitimate expectation arises from an express promise or a consistent past practice; it may be defeated by overriding public interest but requires fair treatment.

Ombudsman-style controls in India: Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act 2013; the Central Vigilance Commission; and the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit of expenditure.

Administrative tribunals under Articles 323A and 323B exclude High Court jurisdiction under Article 226 only if the statute so provides; judicial review under Articles 32 and 226 is otherwise preserved (L. Chandra Kumar).

Doctrine of pleasure in service law is limited by Article 311 and by statutory safeguards; a public servant has a right to be heard before adverse action with civil consequences.

Mens rea under IPC section 299/300: culpable homicide requires intention to cause death or knowledge that the act is likely to cause death; murder adds clauses (1)-(4) of section 300, subject to Exceptions 1-5.

Section 300 Exception 1 (sudden provocation) requires: provocation not sought, not a mere insult, and no time for passion to cool; Exception 4 (sudden fight) requires no premeditation and a sudden quarrel.

Theft (section 378) requires dishonest intention to take movable property out of the possession of another without consent; extortion (section 383) requires putting a person in fear of injury and thereby obtaining property.

Cheating (section 415) requires deception, dishonest inducement, and delivery of property or consent to retention; criminal breach of trust (section 405) requires entrustment followed by dishonest misappropriation.

CrPC classification: cognizable/non-cognizable and bailable/non-bailable are independent axes; a cognizable offence permits arrest without warrant and investigation without a magistrate's order (section 154).

Section 161 CrPC examination of witnesses during investigation; statements under section 161 cannot be used as substantive evidence, but can be used to contradict under section 145 of the Evidence Act.

Section 25 of the Evidence Act: no confession made to a police officer is proved; section 26 excludes confessions in police custody unless made in the immediate presence of a Magistrate; section 27 admits so much of the information as leads distinctly to a fact discovered.

Section 32 Evidence Act dying declaration: admissible only if the maker is dead or unavailable and the statement relates to the cause of death; it must be voluntary and can be the sole basis of conviction if found trustworthy.

Burden of proof: prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt; sections 105-106 shift the burden in specific situations (insanity, exceptions, facts especially within knowledge).

Section 10 Contract Act: agreement plus consideration plus capacity plus free consent plus lawful object equals a valid contract; section 2(h) defines contract as an agreement enforceable by law.

Section 2(d) consideration: an act, abstinence or promise at the desire of the promisor; past, present or future consideration is valid; privity of contract generally bars third-party enforcement, subject to exceptions (trust, family arrangement, agency).

Section 56: an agreement becomes void when performance becomes impossible by an act of God or change of law; commercial hardship does not make performance impossible.

Free consent (section 14) requires absence of coercion (15), undue influence (16), fraud (17), misrepresentation (18) and mistake (20-22); section 19 permits rescission or damages in fraud and misrepresentation.

Section 74: reasonable compensation for breach is not limited to the stipulated sum; a genuine pre-estimate of loss may be awarded, but a penalty is not enforced as such.

Tort of negligence: duty of care (Donoghue v Stevenson neighbour principle), breach, causation and damage; res ipsa loquitur shifts the evidential burden where the thing is under the defendant's control.

Strict liability (Rylands v Fletcher) applies to escape of a dangerous thing brought on land for a non-natural use; the rule in M.C. Mehta v Union of India imposes absolute liability for hazardous enterprises with no exceptions.

Vicarious liability: master liable for torts of a servant committed in the course of employment; an independent contractor's torts generally do not bind the employer, except non-delegable duties.

Defamation requires a defamatory statement, publication to a third party, and damage; defences include truth, fair comment and privilege; defamation per se is actionable without proof of special damage.

Transfer of Property Act section 5: transfer of property means an act by which a living person conveys property to one or more living persons; a transfer to an unborn person is governed by sections 13-16.

Section 53A doctrine of part performance: a transferee in possession under a written contract can defend possession if he has performed his part, even without a registered transfer.

Section 54: sale of tangible immovable property of value Rs 100 or more requires a registered instrument; section 58 defines mortgage, including simple, usufructuary, English and equitable mortgage by deposit of title deeds.

Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act 1988 as amended in 2016: benami property is liable to confiscation; the real owner and the benamidar can both be prosecuted.

Hindu Succession Act 1956 (as amended 2005): daughters are coparceners by birth with rights equal to sons; section 6 governs devolution of coparcenary interest.

Hindu Marriage Act 1955: conditions in section 5 include monogamy, age (21 for bridegroom, 18 for bride), sound mind and absence of prohibited relationship; section 13 lists divorce grounds, including cruelty and desertion for two years.

Special Marriage Act 1954: registration of marriage under section 4 requires notice and a 30-day objection period; marriages under it are governed by the Indian Succession Act for succession.

Maintenance: section 125 CrPC provides a summary remedy for wife, children and parents unable to maintain themselves; the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act and the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act provide separate rights.

Family courts under the Family Courts Act 1984 have jurisdiction over matrimonial and guardianship disputes; the Act encourages conciliation and provides for a female judge preference in rule-making.

Companies Act 2013 section 2(20): a company is a company incorporated under the Act or under any previous company law; incorporation requires a certificate under section 7.

Salomon v Salomon: a company is a separate legal person distinct from its members; the corporate veil may be lifted for fraud, tax evasion, or where the company is a mere sham.

Board composition: section 149 requires at least 3 directors for a public company, 2 for a private company and 1 for a One Person Company; at least one woman director for prescribed classes of companies.

Section 135 CSR: companies meeting thresholds (net worth Rs 500 crore, turnover Rs 1000 crore, or net profit Rs 5 crore) must spend 2% of average net profits of the preceding three years.

Audit and audit committee: section 177 requires an audit committee for listed companies and prescribed classes; section 139 mandates auditor appointment for five years subject to ratification.

Related party transactions: section 188 requires board or shareholder approval depending on thresholds; section 184 requires disclosure of interest by directors.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016: corporate insolvency resolution process begins on admission of an application; the resolution professional invites resolution plans, and the committee of creditors approves with 66% voting share.

SEBI (LODR) Regulations 2015: listed entities must have at least one-third independent directors (or as prescribed) and comply with corporate governance reporting; the Kotak Committee recommendations shaped the current framework.

Oppression and mismanagement: sections 241-242 allow the NCLT to grant relief where affairs are conducted in a manner prejudicial to members or public interest; section 244 sets the eligibility threshold for filing.

Austin: law is a command of a sovereign backed by sanction; legal positivism separates law as it is from law as it ought to be; Hart's rule of recognition supplies the validity criterion of a legal system.

Kelsen's pure theory: a hierarchy of norms grounded in a Grundnorm; validity of each norm derives from a higher norm, not from morality or fact.

Natural law tradition: Aquinas links law to reason and the common good; Fuller's 'inner morality of law' lists eight desiderata including generality, promulgation and non-retroactivity.

Dworkin: law as integrity, rules versus principles, and the one-right-answer thesis; rights are trumps over collective goals; Hercules is the ideal judge.

Legal realism: law is what courts do (Holmes, Llewellyn); the prediction theory of law; rule-scepticism and fact-scepticism.

Bentham and Mill: utilitarianism measures right action by the greatest happiness; Bentham's felicific calculus; Mill adds the harm principle in On Liberty.

Rawls: justice as fairness, the original position and the veil of ignorance; two principles, the liberty principle and the difference principle.

Sociological school: Ehrlich's living law, Pound's law in books versus law in action, and social engineering through law.

Feminist and critical theory: MacKinnon on dominance and subordination; critical legal studies challenge the indeterminacy and legitimacy of doctrine.

Sources under Article 38(1) ICJ Statute: international conventions, international custom, general principles of law, and judicial decisions and teachings as subsidiary means.

Customary international law requires State practice (duration, consistency, generality) plus opinio juris; persistent objectors may escape a new rule of custom.

Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties 1969: pacta sunt servanda (Article 26); a treaty is void if it conflicts with a peremptory norm (jus cogens, Article 53); reservations are permitted unless prohibited (Article 19).

Jus cogens norms include prohibitions on genocide, slavery, torture and aggression; obligations erga omnes are owed to the international community as a whole (Barcelona Traction).

ICJ jurisdiction: contentious cases require State consent (special agreement, treaty clause or optional clause under Article 36(2)); advisory opinions are non-binding.

UDHR 1948 is a declaration, not a treaty; ICCPR and ICESCR 1966 are binding treaties; the Human Rights Committee monitors ICCPR compliance and hears individual communications under the Optional Protocol.

India's Protection of Human Rights Act 1993 established the NHRC; it can inquire into complaints, but cannot enforce its recommendations, which are advisory.

State responsibility requires an attributable act or omission in breach of an international obligation; remedies include cessation, reparation (restitution, compensation, satisfaction) and countermeasures.

Diplomatic immunity under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations 1961: inviolability of mission premises, archives and the person of the diplomatic agent; immunity from criminal jurisdiction is absolute.

Constitutional basis: Article 48A (State duty to protect environment) and Article 51A(g) (fundamental duty of citizens); Article 21 includes the right to a clean environment.

Precautionary principle and polluter pays principle are part of Indian environmental law (Vellore Citizens Welfare Forum, 1996); the public trust doctrine makes the State a trustee of natural resources.

Environment (Protection) Act 1986 is umbrella legislation; section 3 empowers the Central Government to take measures; section 15 penalties; the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 created a specialised forum with appellate and original jurisdiction.

Water Act 1974 and Air Act 1981 established State Pollution Control Boards; consent to establish and consent to operate are mandatory for prescribed industries.

Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972: schedules classify protected species; the 2022 amendment restructured schedules and strengthened the National Board for Wildlife.

Forest Conservation Act 1980 (now Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam 2023): diversion of forest land for non-forest use requires prior approval of the Central Government.

Labour Codes 2019-2020: Code on Wages 2019, Industrial Relations Code 2020, Social Security Code 2020, and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code 2020 consolidate 29 central labour laws.

Code on Wages 2019: universal minimum wage, floor wage, timely payment of wages, and prohibition of gender discrimination in wages for the same work.

Industrial Relations Code 2020: threshold for standing orders raised to 300 workers; recognition of trade unions; notice of strike required in public utility services.

Identify the ratio decidendi (the rule necessary to the decision) and distinguish it from obiter dicta (observations not necessary to the decision); only the ratio binds as precedent.

Distinguish a precedent on facts, on law, or on the principle; a higher court's decision binds lower courts in the same hierarchy; a coordinate bench's contrary view creates a conflict resolved by a larger bench.

In statutory interpretation, begin with the literal rule; if it produces absurdity, apply the golden rule; where the literal meaning is unclear, apply the mischief rule (Heydon's case) to suppress the mischief and advance the remedy.

Expressio unius est exclusio alterius: express mention of one thing excludes others; ejusdem generis: general words following specific words take colour from the specific class.

Noscitur a sociis: a word takes meaning from the words associated with it; ut res magis valeat quam pereat: prefer an interpretation that makes the provision effective.

Syllogistic reasoning in legal answers: major premise (rule), minor premise (facts), conclusion; identify whether the reasoning is deductive, inductive or analogical.

Fallacies to spot: ad hominem, straw man, begging the question, false dilemma, appeal to authority, and post hoc ergo propter hoc.

For a fact-pattern question, sequence: identify the legal issue, state the applicable rule with authority, apply it to the material facts, and state the conclusion with the strongest counterargument addressed.

Ratio of a case can be found from the question the court was answering and the material facts it treated as decisive; a decision on an alternative ground may produce multiple ratios.

Track Supreme Court Constitution Bench references: the basic structure, Article 370 abrogation, electoral bonds, same-sex marriage, and the scope of Article 21 are recurring themes in recent years.

Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023: consent-based processing, Data Protection Board, significant data fiduciaries, and penalties up to Rs 250 crore for failure to prevent data breach.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023 replaced the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act respectively, effective 1 July 2024; note new section numbering.

Research aptitude: distinguish primary sources (statutes, reports, judgments) from secondary sources (commentaries, journals, digests); use SCC, SCR and AIR for case law, and India Code for statutes.

Citation form: a case citation gives party names, year, reporter volume and page; a statute citation gives short title, year, section and subsection.

Empirical legal research: sampling methods (random, stratified, purposive), validity and reliability, and the difference between quantitative and qualitative data.

Doctrinal versus non-doctrinal research: doctrinal analyses legal doctrine from authoritative texts; non-doctrinal uses empirical methods such as surveys and interviews.

Legal aid and access to justice: Legal Services Authorities Act 1987; Lok Adalats and permanent Lok Adalats; Article 39A directs the State to provide free legal aid.

Recent governance themes: the Mediation Act 2023, the Telecommunication Act 2023, and the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act 2023 decriminalising minor offences.

For a question on precedent, check: was the earlier decision reversed, overruled, or distinguished; was it per incuriam; and was it sub silentio on the point in issue.

For a question on statutory interpretation, check whether the provision is penal (strict construction in favour of the accused), taxing (strict construction), or remedial (beneficial construction).

For a question on constitutional validity, apply the presumption of constitutionality; the burden is on the challenger to show a clear violation; a statute may be saved by reading down.

For a question on a contract, check offer, acceptance, consideration, capacity, free consent, legality and intention to create legal relations in that order.

For a tort question, identify the duty, the standard of care (reasonable person), breach, factual causation ('but for' test), remoteness (reasonably foreseeable) and defences.

For a criminal law question, check actus reus, mens rea, causation, and then general exceptions (private defence, necessity, insanity, intoxication, consent) before concluding.

For an evidence question, classify the fact as relevant, then check admissibility (hearsay, privilege, character evidence) before assessing weight.

For a company law question, check the entity's separate personality, the powers of the board versus the general meeting, and whether the act is ultra vires the company or the directors.

Answer structure for legal reasoning: issue, rule with citation, application to facts, conclusion; state the strongest contrary argument and why it fails.