Kerala Judicial Service · High Court of Kerala
Kerala is won or lost in the judgment-writing block — and it docks a mark for every wrong guess.
A single 200-mark prelims paper with −1 per wrong answer, then a Mains that turns on judgment-writing. We map it subject-by-subject across seven prelims and two mains papers and the Kerala-only Acts.
- Conducting body High Court of Kerala
- Post Civil Judge (Junior Division)
- Eligibility Law degree recognised by the Bar Council of India
- Age Under 35 on 1 Jan (+5 SC/ST, +3 OBC)
- Stages Prelims → Mains (Written + Viva)
- Language English, with Malayalam translation in Mains Paper I
Two stages — and prelims is a pure filter that earns you nothing.
Prelims short-lists at a 1:10 ratio and its marks vanish. Your entire merit is built in the four Mains papers and the viva — plan your time accordingly.
Stage 1 · Screening
Preliminary Exam
Objective · one paper · OMR
A single objective paper. Marks count only to short-list at a 1:10 ratio — they are NOT added to your final merit.
- One paper
- 100 MCQs · 200 marks · 2½ hr
- Negative marking
- −1 mark per wrong answer
- Counts toward rank
- No — screening only
Stage 2 · Selection
Main (Written) Exam
Descriptive · 4 papers
Four papers of 100 marks each, three hours apiece. Paper IV ends in two full judgments — the single most decisive block.
- Paper I — Language
- 100 marks · 3 hr
- Papers II–IV — Law
- 100 each · 300 total
- Call for viva
- ≤ 3× notified vacancies
Stage 3 · Final
Viva-Voce
Personality + law
Maximum 50 marks, added straight to the Mains written total. Final merit = Mains written + viva.
- Viva marks
- 50 (added to Mains)
- Cut-off
- 40% general/OBC · 35% SC/ST
- Prelims weight in merit
- Zero (screening only)
Can you apply? Check this before anything else.
Qualification
A degree in Law recognised by the Bar Council of India for the purpose of enrolment as an Advocate.
Age
Must not have completed 35 years on 1 January of the recruitment year. Relaxation: +5 years SC/ST, +3 years OBC, +10 years for persons with benchmark disabilities.
Practice
None required — fresh law graduates may apply directly. The post is Civil Judge (Junior Division), not a Bar-experience cadre.
Nationality
Citizen of India, of good character and sound health.
Language
Working knowledge of Malayalam is essential — Mains Paper I tests translation of Malayalam depositions and documents to English and vice-versa.
Attempts
No attempt limit specified in the notification — only the age ceiling applies.
The full syllabus, paper by paper.
Prelims screens you on one objective paper split A:B:C; Mains tests the four papers that build your rank.
Prelims — one paper, 40:40:20
Code of Civil Procedure · Indian Contract Act · Negotiable Instruments Act · Transfer of Property Act · Specific Relief Act · Kerala Building (Lease & Rent Control) Act.
Code of Criminal Procedure · Indian Penal Code · Indian Evidence Act.
Constitution of India · Legal G.K. (maxims, leading cases, current legal affairs) · Reasoning & Mental Ability.
Mains — 4 papers
- Paper I — Language100
- Paper II — Civil substantive & Kerala local Acts100
- Paper III — Criminal & special Acts100
- Paper IV — Procedure & judgment writing100
The prelims subjects, ranked by how hard the paper actually tests them.
Share of the 700 classified questions across the 2013, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2023 prelims. The paper sits on a fixed 40:40:20 skeleton — Part A civil, Part B criminal, Part C constitution / legal-GK / reasoning.
Code of Criminal Procedure
16%Heaviest subject overall
Investigation, arrest & default bail, cognizance, charge, trial, s. 125 maintenance, appeal/revision. Out-scored CPC in four of seven years, peaking at 20 in 2023.
Code of Civil Procedure
14%The Part A anchor
Execution & O.21, decrees vs orders, res judicata, O.2 R.2, jurisdiction, written statements, amendment of pleadings. Spiked to 19 in 2023.
Indian Penal Code
13%Most stable scorer
General exceptions, offences against the body, property offences, definitional sections. Consistently 10–15 every single year — dependable, high-yield marks.
Indian Evidence Act
12%Steady, drifting up
Confessions (ss. 25–27), presumptions (ss. 90, 112, 114), admissions, primary/secondary evidence, dying declarations. 11–14 every year since 2017.
Transfer of Property Act
7%Top second-tier civil subject
Mortgages, vested/contingent interest, doctrine of election, s. 53A part performance, lis pendens. Volatile (4–10) but reliably present.
Contract · Specific Relief · NI Act · Kerala BRC
19%Small subjects, perennial marks
Contract (~5%) and Specific Relief (~5%) are compact, learnable blocks; NI Act and the Kerala BRC Act each yield ~4 questions every paper. Combined, a guaranteed chunk.
What to study first, and what gives the most marks per hour.
- Do first CPC + CrPC
The two procedural codes are ~30% of every prelims paper and the whole of Mains Paper IV. Highest-return investment in the exam.
- Secure next IPC + Evidence
Together ~25% of prelims and the core of Mains Paper III. Stable and high-yield — with the codes, the "big five" is ~61% of all prelims questions.
- High return TPA · Contract · Specific Relief
The civil-substantive spine of Mains Paper II and the strongest second-tier prelims subjects. Compact and learnable — maxims and sections repeat.
- Cheap & certain NI Act · Kerala BRC Act
Each yields ~4 prelims questions every year for little effort. Small in volume, high in reliability — never skip them.
- Make-or-break Judgment writing (Paper IV)
Two full judgments, civil + criminal, carry outsized Mains marks. Practise issue-framing and reasoned orders relentlessly.
The state-specific edge most all-India material skips.
Kerala Building (Lease & Rent Control) Act
Kerala’s headline state-specific Act, in BOTH prelims and Mains Paper II. Low volume (~4 prelims questions a year, ~10 across two Mains papers) but high-certainty — s. 11 grounds of eviction dominate, plus s. 11(3) vs 11(8) and cessation of occupation. Cheap, near-certain marks.
Kerala’s wider local-law shelf
Mains adds a stack of Kerala statutes no all-India book covers: Abkari Act, Kerala Police Act, Kerala Forest Act, Court Fees & Suits Valuation Act, Stamp Act, Panchayat Raj / Municipality Acts, Legal Services Authorities Act, and the Civil & Criminal Rules of Practice. Definitions, forum and procedure are usually enough.
Study the new codes — BNS, BNSS, BSA
Every available PYQ (2013–2023) uses IPC / CrPC / Evidence Act. From 1 July 2024 these become Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam. Re-map recurring themes — confessions ss. 25–27 → BSA, default bail / s. 167 → BNSS, offences against body → BNS. Kerala’s local Acts are unaffected.
Judgment writing decides Mains
Paper IV closes with two compulsory full judgments — one civil (frame issues + write it: a specific-performance suit in 2020, a fall-of-tree tort in 2022) and one criminal (rash & negligent driving in 2020, voluntarily causing hurt in 2022). Disproportionate marks ride on this one skill.
Everything you need to practise Kerala Judiciary — free.
Past Kerala prelims papers (2013–2023), solved and arranged like the real single-paper exam.
Open Mains Mains Questions & SolutionsKerala mains papers (2020 & 2022) with model answers, including the judgment-writing block.
Open Notes Free Notes & LecturesSubject-wise notes — CPC, CrPC, IPC, Evidence, Contract, TPA and the Kerala BRC Act.
OpenRead the actual Kerala papers this analysis is built on.
Start with the distribution files for the big picture, then solve full papers in timed blocks.
Method: every question in seven complete prelims papers (700 total, 100 each) and the two available mains papers was read and classified by legal subject — not inferred from headings. Only two mains papers exist, so mains trend statements are provisional, and all percentages are well-grounded estimates from the source files.
Kerala Judiciary — quick answers.
Who conducts the Kerala Judiciary exam?
The High Court of Kerala conducts the Kerala Judicial Service Examination for the post of Civil Judge (Junior Division), under the Kerala Judicial Service Rules, 1991.
What is the eligibility for Kerala Judiciary?
A law degree recognised by the Bar Council of India and age not exceeding 35 years on 1 January of the recruitment year (relaxed by 5 years for SC/ST, 3 for OBC). Fresh law graduates may apply — no practice at the Bar is required.
Is there negative marking in the prelims?
Yes. The single objective prelims has 100 questions of 2 marks each (200 total) and one mark is deducted for every wrong answer.
Does the prelims score count in the final merit?
No. The preliminary examination is only a screening test that short-lists candidates at a 1:10 ratio; its marks are not added to the final order of merit.
What is the 40:40:20 split in the prelims?
The 100-question paper is built on a fixed Part A : Part B : Part C skeleton — roughly 40% civil law, 40% criminal law and 20% Constitution, Legal G.K. and reasoning.
How many papers are in the Mains?
Four written papers of 100 marks each (three hours apiece): a language paper, a civil substantive paper, a criminal paper and a procedure-and-judgment-writing paper.
What is the viva-voce cut-off?
The viva carries a maximum of 50 marks; the qualifying cut-off is 40% for General and OBC candidates and 35% for SC/ST. Viva marks are added to the Mains written total.
Should I study IPC/CrPC or the new criminal codes?
Every available PYQ (2013–2023) uses the IPC, CrPC and Evidence Act, but from 1 July 2024 these become the BNS, BNSS and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam — study the new codes and re-map recurring themes.
Practise on questions built to this exact weightage.
Free mock series modelled on the High Court of Kerala pattern — the single-paper prelims at its true 40:40:20 split, the four Mains papers, and BNS/BNSS/BSA-mapped questions.