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Law Optional Syllabus for UPSC Mains

Both Law optional papers from the CSE 2026 notice, word for word, with how the six parts are arranged and pointers to help you decide whether the subject suits you.

Updated 12 Oct 2026 7 min read 3 official sources

Law optional at a glance

Papers in the mains: VI and VII
Marks: 500250 per paper, counted for your rank
Time: 3 hoursper paper
Level: Bachelor's degreethe notice's level for Law

From the CSE 2026 notice.

On this page3 sections

How the syllabus is organised
The official syllabus
Who this optional suits

Law is one of the optional subjects for the UPSC Civil Services Main Examination. Like every optional, it is written as two papers, Paper VI and Paper VII of the mains, of 250 marks each, and both count towards your final rank along with the Essay and the four General Studies papers.

Law is one of the subjects for which the notice sets a different level. Most optional syllabi are "broadly of the honours degree level", above a bachelor's degree and below a master's; for Engineering, Medical Science and Law, the CSE 2026 notice says the level corresponds to a bachelor's degree. Below are both Law papers as the notice prints them, a summary of how they are arranged, and some points to help you decide.

How the syllabus is organised

The two papers are divided into six parts, each a numbered list of short topics.

Paper I has two parts. Constitutional and Administrative Law, in 16 topics, covers the Constitution and its distinctive features, fundamental rights, directive principles and duties, the President and the Governor, the Supreme Court and High Courts, the Centre, the states and local bodies, legislative powers and privileges, the services and bodies such as the UPSC and the Election Commission, emergency provisions, amendment of the Constitution, natural justice, delegated legislation, separation of powers, judicial review of administrative action, and the ombudsman. International Law, in 15 topics, runs from the nature of international law and its relation to municipal law, through state recognition, the law of the sea, nationality and human rights, treaties, the United Nations and the use of force, to humanitarian law, nuclear weapons, international terrorism, the international economic order, and the protection of the environment.
Paper II has four parts: Law of Crimes (16 topics, from the general principles of criminal liability to specific offences, statutes and plea bargaining), Law of Torts (13 topics, from the kinds of liability and general defences to negligence, nuisance, defamation and malicious prosecution), Law of Contracts and Mercantile Law (13 topics, from the formation of contracts to agency, sale of goods, partnership, negotiable instruments and arbitration), and Contemporary Legal Developments (8 topics, including public interest litigation, intellectual property, information technology and cyber law, competition law, alternate dispute resolution and the Right to Information Act).

The official syllabus

Here are both papers as the CSE 2026 notice prints them.

Law: Paper I · 250 marks

Wording as printed in the CSE 2026 notice

Constitutional and administrative Law :
1. Constitution and Constitutionalism:The distinctive features of the Constitution.
2. Fundamental Rights—Public interest litigation; Legal Aid; Legal services authority.
3. Relationship between Fundamental rights, Directive principles and Fundamental duties.
4. Constitutional Position of the President and relation with the Council of Ministers.
5. Governor and his powers.
6. Supreme Court and the High Courts:
(a) Appointments and transfer.
(b) Powers, functions and jurisdiction.
7. Centre, States and local bodies:
(a) Distribution of legislative powers between the Union and the States.
(b)Local Bodies.
(c)Administrative relationship among Union, State and Local Bodies.
(d)Eminent domain-State property-common property-community property.
8. Legislative powers, privileges and immunities.
9. Services under the Union and the States:
(a)Recruitment and conditions of services; Constitutional safeguards; Administrative tribunals.
(b)Union Public Service Commission and State Public Service Commissions—Power and functions.
(c)Election Commission—Power and functions.
10. Emergency provisions.
11. Amendment of the Constitution.
12. Principle of Natural Justice—Emerging trends and judicial approach.
13. Delegated legislation and its constitutionality.
14. Separation of powers and constitutional governance.
15. Judicial review of administrative action.
16. Ombudsman: Lokayukta, Lokpal etc.
International Law :
1. Nature and Definition of International Law.
2. Relationship between International Law and Municipal Law.
3. State Recognition and State Succession.
4. Law of the sea: Inland Waters,Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic Zone and High Seas.
5. Individuals: Nationality, statelessness; Human Rights and procedures available for their enforcement.
6. Territorial jurisdiction of States, Extradition and Asylum.
7. Treaties : Formation, application, termination and reservation.
8. United Nations : Its principal organs, powers and functions and reform.
9. Peaceful settlement of disputes—different modes.
10. Lawful recourse to force : aggressions, self-defence, intervention.
11. Fundamental principles of international humanitarian law—International conventions and contemporary developments.
12. Legality of the use of nuclear weapons; ban on testing of nuclear weapons; Nuclear non- proliferation treaty, CTST.
13. International Terrorism, State sponsored terrorism, Hijacking, International Criminal Court.
14. New International Economic Order and Monetary Law : WTO, TRIPS, GATT, IMF, World Bank.
15. Protection and Improvement of the Human Environment : International Efforts.

Law: Paper II · 250 marks

Wording as printed in the CSE 2026 notice

Law of Crimes :—
1. General principles of Criminal liability : mens rea and actus reus, mens rea in statutory offences.
2. Kinds of punishment and emerging trends as to abolition of capital punishment.
3. Preparations and criminal attempt.
4. General exceptions.
5. Joint and constructive liability.
6. Abetment.
7. Criminal conspiracy.
8. Offences against the State.
9. Offences against public tranquility.
10. Offences against human body.
11. Offences against property.
12. Offences against women.
13. Defamation.
14. Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
15. Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and subsequent legislative developments.
16. Plea bargaining.
Law of Torts
1. Nature and definition.
2. Liability based upon fault and strict liability; Absolute liability.
3. Vicarious liability including State Liability.
4. General defences.
5. Joint tort fessors.
6. Remedies.
7. Negligence.
8. Defamation.
9. Nuisance.
10. Conspiracy.
11. False imprisonment.
12. Malicious prosecution.
13. Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
Law of Contracts and Mercantile Law
1. Nature and formation of contract/E-contract.
2. Factors vitiating free consent.
3. Void, voidable, illegal and unenforceable agreements.
4. Performance and discharge of contracts.
5. Quasi-contracts.
6. Consequences of breach of contract.
7. Contract of indemnity, guarantee and insurance.
8. Contract of agency.
9. Sale of goods and hire purchase.
10. Formation and dissolution of partnership.
11. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
12. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996.
13. Standard form contracts.
Contemporary Legal Developments
1. Public Interest Litigation.
2. Intellectual property rights—Concept, types/prospects.
3. Information Technology Law including Cyber Laws—Concept, purpose/prospects.
4. Competition Law—Concept, purpose/prospects.
5. Alternate Dispute Resolution—Concept, types/prospects.
6. Major statutes concerning environmental law.
7. Right to Information Act.
8. Trial by media.

Source: UPSC: Civil Services Examination 2026 notice, Appendix I Section III (Syllabi). The words are UPSC's. We reflowed the PDF's lines and marked its headings; for the exact layout, see the notice.

Here are both papers of every year from UPSC's own website. Read them alongside the syllabus above.

Law question papers, 2016 to 2026

Each link opens the PDF on upsc.gov.in

UPSC Civil Services (Main) Examination question papers in Law, by year
Exam year	Papers
CSE 2026	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2025	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2024	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2023	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2022	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2021	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2020	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2019	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2018	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2017	Paper I Paper II
CSE 2016	Paper I Paper II

Links checked on 13 October 2026. Source: UPSC: Previous Question Papers (current page and archives).

Who this optional suits

Only you can weigh your interests, your background and the time you have. These pointers may help you think it through.

Your degree. If you hold a law degree, much of the syllabus will be familiar; the notice itself pitches it at the level of a bachelor's degree.
Coming from another field. If law is new to you, give Paper II's crimes, torts and contracts extra time, and practise applying each principle to a short set of facts.
Legal reasoning. If you enjoy reading a rule closely, applying it to facts and writing a precise conclusion, Law may suit the way you think.
Links with General Studies. The GS Paper II syllabus names the Constitution's features and amendments, the functions of the Union and the states, separation of powers, and appointments to constitutional posts and the powers of constitutional bodies. Paper I's constitutional law has topics on each of these, so your notes can serve both papers.
Test it before you commit. Read the full syllabus above, then try answering a question or two from previous year papers. Choose on your own interest and background rather than on what others pick.

To compare Law with every other subject you could choose, see the full list of UPSC optional subjects and our note on how to choose an optional. For where the optional sits among the nine papers, see the UPSC Mains syllabus; for the related General Studies topics, see the GS Paper 2 syllabus and the guide to the polity syllabus.

This page follows the CSE 2026 notice. UPSC's calendar lists the CSE 2027 notification for 13 January 2027 (see the UPSC calendar). When it is out, check its syllabus against this page before you plan your year.

Frequently asked questions

What level is the Law optional syllabus?

A bachelor's degree. The notice sets most optional syllabi at broadly honours degree level, above a bachelor's and below a master's, but for Engineering, Medical Science and Law it says the level corresponds to a bachelor's degree.

Do I need a degree in law to choose the Law optional?

No. The notice's minimum qualification is a graduate degree, or an equivalent qualification, without naming a subject, and it lets you choose any one optional from its list. See eligibility criteria.

How many marks is the Law optional?

500. Your optional is written as two papers, Paper VI and Paper VII of the mains, of 250 marks each, and each paper is three hours long. Both count towards the 1,750 written marks that, with the 275-mark interview, decide your final rank.

Can I write the Law optional in Hindi?

Yes. The CSE 2026 notice lets you answer every mains paper except the two qualifying language papers in English or in any one language of the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution, and Hindi is one of the media it lists. Question papers other than literature papers are set in Hindi and English. If you answer in Hindi, you may add the English version of technical terms in brackets. You can also write the Essay and GS papers in Hindi and your optional in English. See medium of the exam.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from these official documents. If you spot a difference, the official document is right; tell us and we'll fix the page.

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