CLAT Quantitative Caselets: Turn a Passage into a Table
Written and reviewed by Shubham Jain, BA LL.B., LL.M. · UILS, Panjab University alumnus · founder with 15+ years of teaching · Jury Law Academy, founded in 2016.
Oct 16, 2026
An original practice caselet
At a fictional student workshop, 240 participants chose one of two sessions: debate or research. Of all participants, 60% chose debate. There were 80 commerce students, of whom 50 chose debate. There were 100 humanities students, of whom 70 chose debate. The remaining participants were science students.
This is an original teaching exercise, not a previous-year CLAT question or an academy attendance claim.
Step 1: Record only what the passage gives
The overall total is 240. Debate has 60% of 240 = 144 participants, so research has 240 − 144 = 96. Commerce research has 80 − 50 = 30. Humanities research has 100 − 70 = 30. Science has 240 − 80 − 100 = 60 participants.
Step 2: Complete the table
| Stream | Debate | Research | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commerce | 50 | 30 | 80 |
| Humanities | 70 | 30 | 100 |
| Science | 24 | 36 | 60 |
| Total | 144 | 96 | 240 |
Science debate is the remaining debate total: 144 − 50 − 70 = 24. Science research is 60 − 24 = 36. Check both column totals before answering.
Step 3: Answer three different question types
What percentage of science students chose research? The denominator is science students, not everyone: 36 ÷ 60 × 100 = 60%.
What is the ratio of commerce to humanities students in debate? Use the debate column: 50:70 = 5:7.
What percentage of all participants were science students in research? Now the denominator is the overall total: 36 ÷ 240 × 100 = 15%. The same numerator gives a different answer because the question asks about a different group.
Errors that this table prevents
- Taking 60% of each stream even though the passage gives 60% of the overall total.
- Confusing a stream total with a session total.
- Treating a ratio as a percentage without finding its total parts.
- Rounding an intermediate number before the final calculation.
- Filling an unknown cell by guesswork rather than subtraction.
A short practice routine
Start untimed: underline totals, circle groups and write one table. On the next attempt, time the table-building step separately from the calculations. Keep a note of the denominator for every percentage answer. Review a wrong answer by locating its first incorrect step, not merely copying the final number.
Progress to mixed caselets only when your row and column totals consistently agree. This practice is about a method, not a promised score or admission outcome.
Continue your CLAT preparation
Read our quantitative techniques guide and mock-score review method. For classroom and online preparation, see CLAT coaching in Chandigarh. Jury Law Academy's verified CLAT 2026 result includes AIR 167; view results and student photographs.
For the current official syllabus and sample-paper availability, use the Consortium of NLUs. A coaching exercise does not replace the official paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I convert a CLAT quantitative passage into a table?
Identify the total, the groups and the relationship between them. Write a labelled table, calculate only the missing values needed by the questions, and check that its totals match the passage.
Which denominator should I use in a percentage question?
Use the group the question asks about. Students in one category as a share of all participants use the overall total; students in that category as a share of their own group use that group's total.
Is the worked example an official CLAT question?
No. It is an original teaching example. Use the Consortium of NLUs website for official sample papers and the applicable exam syllabus.