The Institute of Banking and Personnel Selection (IBPS) functions as an autonomous body that conducts competitive exams for the recruitment of clerical and officers level posts in the banking sector. IBPS SO (Law Officer) is one such post that is conducted by IBPS every year.
In this article, Team YLCC brings you the detailed overview on the IBPS Law Officer Exam. Read on!
ELIGIBILITY FOR THE EXAM
I. Nationality / Citizenship:
A candidate must be either –
- A Citizen of India or
- A subject of Nepal or
- A subject of Bhutan or
- A Tibetan Refugee who came over to India before 1 January 1962 with the intention of permanently
- settling in India or
- A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar), Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India, provided that a candidate belonging to categories (ii), (iii), (iv) & (v) above shall be a person in whose favour a certificate of eligibility has been issued by the Government of India.
II. Age Limit :
Minimum: 20 years
Maximum: 30 years
II. Educational Qualifications :
| Name of the Post |
Age | Educational Qualifications (from a University/ Institution/ Board recognised by Govt. Of India/ approved by Govt. Regulatory Bodies) |
| Law Officer (Scale I) | Min- 20 Years Max-30 Years |
A bachelor’s degree in Law and enrolled as an advocate with Bar Council |
In the case of dual specializations, one of the fields of specialization should be in the field prescribed. In the case of major/ minor specializations, major specialization should be in the stream prescribed. Candidates having PG Degree (MMS or MBA)/PG Diploma with more than two specializations are not eligible to apply.
Relaxation of Upper age limit
| Sr. No. | Category | Age relaxation |
| 1 | SC/ST | 5 years |
| 2 | OBC (Non- creamy layer) | 3 years |
| 3 | PWD. | 10 years |
| 4 | Ex-Servicemen | 5 years |
| 5 | Persons ordinarily domiciled in the State of Jammu & Kashmir during the period 1-1-80 to 31-12-89 |
5 years |
| 6 | Persons affected by 1984 riots | 5 years |
PATTERN OF THE EXAM
The exam pattern of IBPS SO Law Officer comprises of Prelims, Mains followed by an Interview. In order to prepare in the best way possible, you should rightly know about the IBPS SO (Law Officer) exam pattern which will help you in making your preparation strategy.
- Prelims
- Mains
- Interview
IBPS follows fixed criteria in all its exams when it comes to the marking scheme. A penalty of 0.25 marks will be deducted for every incorrect answer. An unattempted question will not be awarded any marks.
Prelims Pattern
The IBPS SO Prelims exam for Law Officer will be an online examination consisting of three sections with sectional timings of 40 minutes each. The total marks for IBPS SO Law Officer Prelims will be 125 whereas the total questions will be 150. The IBPS Law Officer Prelims exam pattern will consist of three sections: Reasoning, English Language & General Awareness (With special reference to the Banking industry).
| S. No. | Name of test | Medium of Exam | No.of questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | English Language | English | 50 | 25 | 40 Minutes |
| 2 | Reasoning | English & Hindi | 50 | 50 | 40 Minutes |
| 3 | General Awareness with Special reference to Banking Industry | English & Hindi | 50 | 50 | 40 Minutes |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 2 Hours |
Mains Pattern
| Name of the Test | Ques | Maximum Marks |
Medium of Exam |
Duration |
| Professional Knowledge | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
Penalty for Wrong Answers (Applicable to both – Online Preliminary and Online Main examinations)
There will be a penalty for wrong answers marked in the Objective Tests. For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate one fourth or 0.25 of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as penalty to arrive at a corrected score. If a question is left blank, i.e. no answer is marked by the candidate, there will be no penalty for that question.
IBPS SO Interview
If you qualify IBPS SO Law Officer Mains exam you will be shortlisted for the Interview and the scores obtained in IBPS SO Law Officer Mains and Interview will be taken into consideration while making the final merit. The weightage of online exam and interview is 80:20. The total marks allotted for the Interview are 100. The minimum qualifying marks in the IBPS SO Law Interview for the general category is 40% and 35% for reserved categories. Besides that, you need to carry all the necessary documents that are prescribed to produce in the Interview round.
SYLLABUS OF THE EXAM
Prelims
| Reasoning Ability | English Language | General Awareness |
| Logical Reasoning | Reading Comprehension | Current Affairs |
| Alphanumeric Series | Cloze Test | GK Updates |
| Ranking/Direction/Alphabet Test | Para jumbles | Currencies |
| Data Sufficiency | Multiple Meaning / Error Spotting | Important Places |
| Coded Inequalities | Fill in the blanks | Banking Awareness |
| Seating Arrangement | Miscellaneous | Awards |
| Puzzle | Paragraph Completion | Book And Author |
| Tabulation | Headquarter | |
| Syllogism | Important Days | |
| Blood Relations | Prime minster Scheme | |
| Input-Output | ||
| Coding-Decoding |
Professional Knowledge
This section has the highest weightage in the exam. Major sections from where questions are asked include Law and Acts with direct and Indirect Implication on the banking sector like Contract Acts, Partnerships, Companies, Firm, Constitution and other such topics such as-
- RBI Functions
- Relevant laws and rulings related to negotiable instruments, securities, Foreign Exchange Prevention of money laundering, Limitation Act
- Bankers Book Evidence Act, DRT Act Offenses and Penalties
- Consumer Protection Act Banking Ombudsman Scheme
- RTI Act, Information Technology Act Banking Regulated Important Laws Limitation Act, 1993
- Banker’s Books Evidence Act, 1891
- The Recovery of Debts due to Banks and Financial Institutions (DRT) Act,1993
- Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002 Miscellaneous Provisions Consumer Protection Act, 1986
- The Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 2006 Procedure for Redressal of Grievance
- Commercial Laws with Reference to Banking Operation Contracts of Guarantee
- Contracts of Bailment Contracts of Pledge Contracts of Agency
- Meaning and Essentials of a Contract of Sale Definition, Meaning, and Nature of Partnership Dissolution of a Firm
- Effects of Non-Registration Definition and Features of Company Types of Companies
- Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association Doctrines of Ultra/Constructive Notice/Indoor Management Transfer of Property Act, 1882
- The Right to Information Act, 2005
- Right to Information and Obligation of Public Authorities Banking Regulation & Compliance and Legal Aspects RBI’s Constitution and Objectives
- Banking Regulation Act, 1949 Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 Credit Information Bureau (India) Banker-Customer Relationship
- Payment and Collection of Cheques and Other Negotiable Instruments Types of Collaterals and their Characteristics
- Foreign Exchange Management Act,1999
- The Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
- Information Technology Act, 2000
SOME IMPORTANT BOOKS FOR IBPS SO PRELIMS
IBPS SO Preparation Books on Reasoning Ability
| Book Name | Publication/Author |
| Verbal Reasoning | MK Pandey |
| Analytical Reasoning | RS Agarwal |
| A Modern approach Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning | BS Sijwali |
IBPS SO Preparation Books on Quantitative Aptitude
| Book Name | Publication/Author |
| Rapid Quantitative Aptitude with Shortcuts & Tricks | Disha Publication |
| Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examination | The Pearson Guide |
| Quantitative Aptitude Book | Wiley’s Publication |
IBPS SO Preparation Books on English
| Book Name | Publication/Author |
| Objective English for Competitive Examinations | Hari Mohan Prasad, Uma Rani Sinha, McGraw Hill Education Publication |
| English Grammar & Composition | Wren and Martin |
| Descriptive General English | S P Bakshi and Richa Sharma |
| Word Power Made Easy | Normal Lewis |
IBPS SO Preparation Books on General Awareness
| Book Name | Publication/ Author |
| Manorama Yearbook | The Malayala Manorama (Mammen Mathew) |
| Guide to Banking General Awareness | R Gupta |
The application fee must be paid online. Fee/Intimation charges once paid will NOT be refunded on any account nor can they be held in reserve for any other examination or selection.
Application Fees for the IBPS SO Exam category wise is given below:
| S.No. | Category | Total |
| 1. | SC/ST/PWD/XS | 175/- (Intimation Charges only) |
| 2. | General and OBC | 850/- (App. Fee including intimation charges) |
YLCC would like to thank the Content Team for their valuable insight in this article.
