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NIRF Rankings 2026: How India’s Law Schools Moved in Rankings Last Year
The Ministry of Education publishes the National Institutional Ranking Framework Rankings (NIRF) for law institutes every year. These rankings are based on 5 parameters: Teaching, Learning & Resources (TLR), Research and Professional Practice (RP), Graduation Outcomes (GO), Outreach and Inclusivity (OI) and Perception (PR). Last year, CNLU Patna saw the biggest jump, climbing to 17th position straight from 31st, a leap of 14 positions. Christ University slipped down to 24th rank from 15th. The top 4 law colleges maintained their spots last year.
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NIRF Law Rankings 2025 vs 2024 - Institutes That Jumped The Ranks
Talking of institutes that jumped the ranks in the NIRF Law rankings 2026, CNLU Patna saw the highest jump, rising 14 positions. NLU Odisha was ranked 15 in NIRF rankings 2025, 11 positions up from its rank 26 in 2024. UPES Dehradun also jumped from rank 28 to 18 with a score of 61.45. MNLU Nagpur, ICFAI, Hyderabad, GNLU Gandhinagar, Aligarh Muslim University, SASTRA University and IIT Kharagpur were among the top rank gainers in 2025.
Law Schools That Surprised in NIRF Rankings Last Year
Institute | Type | Rank 2024 | Rank 2025 | Change | Score 2025 |
CNLU, Patna | Government | 31 | 17 | +14 | 62.40 |
NLU Odisha, Cuttack | Government | 26 | 15 | +11 | 63.66 |
UPES Dehradun | Private | 28 | 18 | +10 | 61.45 |
MNLU Nagpur | Government | 34 | 28 | +6 | 56.54 |
ICFAI, Hyderabad | Private | 36 | 31 | +5 | 55.28 |
GNLU Gandhinagar | Government | 8 | 5 | +3 | 76.23 |
Aligarh Muslim University | Government | 12 | 9 | +3 | 65.82 |
SASTRA University | Private | 14 | 11 | +3 | 65.29 |
IIT Kharagpur | Government | 7 | 6 | +1 | 74.09 |
NIRF Law Rankings 2025 vs 2024 - Institutes That Slipped The Ranks
While many colleges went up the ranks, there were many that saw a downfall in terms of rankings. Christ University saw the biggest fall, dropping to 24th position from 15th. Similarly, NLUJ Assam dropped to rank 35 from rank 27. NUSRL Ranchi, Army Institute of Law, Mohali, Lovely Professional University, Amity University Haryana, University of Lucknow, NLIU Bhopal, Saveetha Institute (SIMATS) and GGSIPU Delhi were among the institutes that saw a major fall in their NIRF ranks compared to the previous year.
Law School That Lost Ranks in 2025
Institute | Type | Rank 2024 | Rank 2025 | Change | Score 2025 |
Christ University | Private | 15 | 24 | -9 | 58.40 |
NLUJA Assam | Government | 27 | 35 | -8 | 53.39 |
NUSRL Ranchi | Government | 22 | 30 | -8 | 55.81 |
Army Institute of Law, Mohali | Private | 30 | 37 | -7 | 53.27 |
Lovely Professional University | Private | 19 | 26 | -7 | 57.98 |
Amity University Haryana | Private | 33 | 39 | -6 | 53.22 |
University of Lucknow | Government | 23 | 29 | -6 | 55.85 |
NLIU Bhopal | Government | 21 | 27 | -6 | 57.64 |
Saveetha Institute (SIMATS) | Private | 13 | 19 | -6 | 60.90 |
GGSIPU Delhi | Government | 17 | 22 | -5 | 60.05 |
Manipal University Jaipur | Private | 29 | 32 | -3 | 54.83 |
KIIT, Bhubaneswar | Private | 11 | 14 | -3 | 65.04 |
Alliance University | Private | 18 | 20 | -2 | 60.83 |
BBA University, Lucknow | Government | 10 | 12 | -2 | 65.26 |
Jamia Millia Islamia | Government | 6 | 8 | -2 | 66.39 |
Symbiosis Law School, Pune | Private | 5 | 7 | -2 | 74.07 |
GITAM | Private | 37 | 38 | -1 | 53.26 |
RMLNLU Lucknow | Government | 20 | 21 | -1 | 60.12 |
Siksha O Anusandhan (SOA) | Private | 9 | 10 | -1 | 65.36 |
New Entrants in NIRF 2025 Law Rankings
Out of 40 ranked colleges in NIRF 2025 law rankings, seven law schools were new entrants. CUSAT Kochi made its entry to the NIRF 2025 law rankings with a 13th rank and a score of 65.19. Central Univ. of South Bihar, SRM Institute (SRMIST), Nirma University, HPNLU Shimla, Galgotias University and Central Univ. of Punjab were the other new entrants in the list.
New Entrants in NIRF Law Rankings
Institute Name | Type | Rank | Score |
CUSAT Kochi | Government | 13 | 65.19 |
Central Univ. of South Bihar | Government | 23 | 58.84 |
SRM Institute (SRMIST) | Private | 25 | 58.00 |
Nirma University | Private | 33 | 53.70 |
HPNLU Shimla | Government | 34 | 53.49 |
Galgotias University | Private | 36 | 53.33 |
Central Univ. of Punjab | Government | 40 | 52.70 |
Top NLUs Maintain Consistency
While there were many changes in the NIRF Law rankings, the top NLUs remained consistent. NLSIU Bengaluru retained its top spot and has been the consistent number one since the inception of the NIRF Law rankings. NLU Delhi, NALSAR Hyderabad and WBNUJS Kolkata retained their 2nd, 3rd and 4th spots, respectively. Dr B.R. Ambedkar College of Law also maintained its 16th spot in the NIRF Law rankings.
RGNUL Patiala, Banaras Hindu University, MNLU Mumbai, Indian Law Institute, NUALS Kochi, and DSNLU Visakhapatnam were included in the 2024 rankings but excluded from the 2025 rankings.
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