If you want to become a criminal lawyer in India, what do you need to do? The first step to becoming a lawyer is getting a Bachelor’s degree in Law, and there are two ways to do that: After 12th grade, you can directly pursue a 5-year integrated law course like BA.LLB or BBA.LLB. Or, if you already have a bachelor’s degree in another subject, you can go for a 3-year LLB course. But to get into a good college for these courses, you need to clear entrance exams like CLAT, LSAT, or AILET. While pursuing your law degree, you’ll need to pay special attention to subjects related to criminal law, such as the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). Even after completing your degree, you cannot start practicing law right away. You need a license to practice law. For that, you must register with your State’s Bar Council and pass the All India Bar Examination (AIBE). Only after obtaining this license can you represent clients in court. And that’s when you officially become a professional Criminal Lawyer.