MOOTING

WHAT IS MOOTING?

Mooting is the oral presentation of a legal
issue or problem against an opposing
counsel and before a judge. It is perhaps the
closest experience that a student can have
whilst at university to appearing in court.


ESSENCE OF MOOTING?


Mooting now forms a compulsory part of
certain law courses, but is still a totally
voluntary student-organised activity in other
law schools. Whether or not mooting is
compulsory at your law school, gaining
mooting experience can have a positive
impact on your future career.
As many students will be aware, the legal
profession is an increasingly difficult one to
enter. Application forms for legal
professional courses, solicitors’ firms and
barristers’ chambers often demand that a
candidate can provide evidence of their
advocacy or mooting experience whilst at
university (over and above any of the more
traditional areas of advocacy such as
debating).
Mooting may also help you to build
confidence in public speaking, general
research, and presentation skills.
HOW IS MOOTING DONE?

The Problem:
A typical moot problem is concerned solely
with a point (or points) of law. Normally it
will take the form of a case heard on appeal
from a lower court with the grounds of appeal
clearly stated.

The Teams:
A moot usually consists of four speakers,
divided into two teams, each consisting of a
leading and junior counsel. One team
represents the appellants, the other the
respondents. Mooters may be judged
individually or as a team.

The Moot Court:
The moot 'court' should reflect, as far as
possible, a courtroom scenario in reality. The
moot is presided over by at least one judge
who delivers a judgment at the end of the
moot on the law and on the result of the
moot itself. The presiding judge is supported
by the clerk of the moot who is responsible
for providing the judge, when required, with a
copy of each legal authority cited by the
mooters in the course of their arguments.
The clerk also times the moot speeches. The
two teams of mooters sit at separate tables,
taking turns to stand to present their
arguments to the moot court.

Conducting research:
It may sound obvious, but ensure from the
start that you and your moot partner know
which side you are arguing for (ie either the
appellant or the respondent). Given that most
moots are team competitions, it may be
convenient to divide the research between
the leader and junior, but co-operation is
essential because many moot teams lose
because each team member is unsure what
the other is arguing.
Begin your research by consulting any text
books with which you are most familiar.
Then check the footnotes — they are often a
godsend to a mooter. Having ascertained
which footnotes are relevant, make a note of
the particular principles or points of law to
which the particular footnote refers and write
against each point the name of each statute,
case, article, or book to which you are being
referred. That will give you a start but expect
many gaps in your research at this stage.
You may also wish to consult old editions of
text books (as this can contribute to the
understanding of the points of law at issue
by placing them in their historical context).
Then continue by researching all the
references that you have unearthed carefully
making a note of any gaps in the research as
they appear.
Textbooks are not of course designed as aids
to mooting and, consequently, they might be
too general and thus of limited assistance.
Structuring and presenting the argument:
Having decided what view you are expected
to persuade the judge to accept, you must
now work out how your argument is to
progress to that conclusion. The easiest way
to note down the required stages of the
argument is by arranging each discrete point
in a sensible order and then numbering them
accordingly. Generally, assume that the moot
judge is familiar with the area of law in
question and do not commence your
argument on too basic a level. It may also be
an idea to start with a point of law that is
uncontroversial in order to find your feet
before considering issues upon which you
are likely to be questioned and contradicted.
Make a proper note of the full citations upon
which you intend to rely, for easy reference
during the course of your speech. Be sure
also that you can give a page reference for
every passage cited from a judgment. Do not
refer to authorities for the sake of it - the
judge may question you in detail on any
particular case mentioned - instead be
prepared to recite a precise proposition of
law that you think any case cited is authority
for. Take care when referring to secondary
sources and above all remember that you are
not writing an essay!
Finally, after all that — do not read out your
moot speech. It is an aide memoir only. The
moot will test not only your ability to present
the argument, but also your response to
questions and flexibility when interrupted by
the judge.