The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) 2017 has already seen a record-breaking all-time high in the number of applicants. Almost 50,000 candidates have already registered for the exam, with a few hours still to go before its application deadline closes tonight and final tallies are counted.

CLAT 2017 convenor CNLU Patna has received more than 42,000 LLB applications and 5,500 LLM applications so far, said CNLU registrar SP Singh today.

While this puts the LLB figure at least 6.3% above last year’s 39,495 applications, interest in the LLM seems to have declined, unless at least 80 more applicants register by 1159pm tonight.

The largest bump in CLAT aspirants so far came in 2015, when 20% more LLB aspirants than in 2014 registered for the exam. But, until this year, the total number of LLB aspirants had never touched 40,000 since CLAT came into existence in 2008.

In 2016, for the first time since 2008 there was a dip in the number of applications since the previous year, but the total LLB applicants were still the second-highest since 2008.

This year, for the first time in CLAT history, applicants did not have the option to register offline for the exam, and CNLU had predicted earlier that this would adversely affect fewer than 500 candidates in their application process.

The final tally of applicants above the Bar Council of India (BCI) age limit that was scrapped by the Supreme Court was not available at the time of publication, but we hope to publish an update once it is.

CLAT is the qualifying exam for admission to LLB and LLM seats in 18 National Law Universities (NLUs), on a preferential allotment basis.

The newest NLU – NLU Shimla has opted to stay out of CLAT this year and conduct its independent admissions, just like NLU Delhi the only other NLU outside CLAT.

CLAT applicants are competing for 1,154 unreserved LLB seats and 389 unreserved LLM seats across the 18 participating NLUs this year.