Paternity determination requires DNA fingerprinting. Investigation of a shooting site requires ballistics analysis of the bullet’s wounding capability, details of the kind of firearms, gunshot residue analysis. Whether the white powder recovered from the accused is cocaine or not requires chemical analysis. Whether the writings on the notepad revealed any conspiracy can be determined by Electrostatic Detection Apparatus (ESDA) for any indentations in the writing. Determination of the cause of an unexplained death requires proper post mortem examination of the deceased. Identification of cybercrimes can be achieved by various cyber forensic techniques for detection, analysis and identification of cybercrimes and criminals.
In all of the above situations, a basic idea of the working of a few devices and techniques and the scientific principles underlying the same are very essential for persons who would perform the required experiments. However, if the cross-examining lawyer or the judge who has to base his decision upon such scientific findings has no idea of the scientific principles, any error in the findings of the experimentalists might go unnoticed. This is likely to cause grave injustice to the victim or the accused, as the case may be. This is probably sufficient to explain the significance of science even in a field like law which apparently might seem to have no connection.
With the present world marching ahead towards being dynamic in almost all respects, be it society or technology, professions and professional courses have been mutated to a considerable extent in order to cater to the needs of the changing demands, providing, in turn, innumerable new opportunities for youngsters and career aspirants. One such significant addition to the course of the centuries-old legal profession has been the introduction of the Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Law (B.Sc. LL.B.) which is a five-year integrated degree program offering an integrated knowledge of science and law.
Given the increasing demands for forensic evidence, including DNA fingerprinting, ballistics explanations, drug analysis, questioned document examination and such other premises which require certain basic, and sometimes, advanced, knowledge of Science, the course of B.Sc. LL.B. has gained significant popularity among law aspirants across the country. Nowadays, lawyers, judges, and other officers of the law who have certain scientific foundations clarified are considered way more equipped than their contemporaries.
Although the course of B.Sc. LL.B. does not require candidates to have had studied Science subjects in their 10+2, yet it might prove helpful for a student to have basic knowledge of Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Computer Science at their school level to opt for B.Sc. LL.B.
It is important to note that there is no change in the law subjects included in the curriculum of other courses like B.A. LL.B. or B.B.A. LL.B. The only change in the subjects is where the science subjects are incorporated in B.Sc. LL.B. in place of political science or economics and other like subjects of the other courses. Generally, subjects that are taught in this course are Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Computer Science, with special importance and attention to the forensic aspect of such subjects.
The course might also be designed to include practical papers for such science subjects, which helps students to get a first-hand experience at certain techniques and experiments which are doable at the university laboratory. For example, differentiating inks in questioned documents, drug analysis using thin-layer chromatography, bio-informatics comparison using simple software, the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique for DNA amplification, are feasible to be performed in the laboratory. These give a practical idea as to how such techniques function.
Job opportunities for B.Sc. LL.B. graduates are no less in number and importance as compared to those for graduates for other courses of law. A student with a B.Sc. LL.B. degree can make the most of the different job opportunities available. The employment areas for graduates are the judiciary, consultancies, research firms, educational institutes or can even start their own practice. India has a great demand for skilled lawyers with a good professional background. A quick myth-buster: No particular course is given preference to others in terms of job opportunities or salaries.
Various law schools throughout the country provide for the integrated B.Sc. LL.B. (H) program. Amongst the significant law schools across the country, the School of Law and Justice, Adamas University, is one of the prominent one offering a B.Sc. LLB to the aspiring students in the legal field in Kolkata.
Hence, the increasing importance of scientific knowledge in the field of law calls for wider accessibility of the course of B.Sc. LL.B. across the country and abroad. It has been recognized by various eminent professors and scholars that knowledge of science plays a very vital role for law students to understand various other concepts of law including intellectual property laws, criminal psychology and the like. So, the present scenario calls for professionals who are not just legal, but also scientifically legal.
