The exam has three stages- preliminary examination, main examination, and viva-voce/ interview. Depending on the State, the prelims exam stage usually has one/two papers i.e. General Knowledge and Law. Both the papers are multiple-choice questions and you only need to score above the cut-off to proceed to the next stage. The marks scored in this stage are not counted in your final score. The main examination usually has five papers- General Knowledge, Language, Law I(Substantive law), Law II (Procedure and Evidence), and Law III (Penal, Revenue, and Local laws). The papers have both objective and subjective type questions. The last stage is viva voce. It is in the form of an interview and only candidates who have cleared the mains exam can appear in the same.  Merit list is prepared by adding the final marks obtained in mains exam and interview.