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MOOTING AT OXFORD
The Faculty of Law at Oxford boasts an outstanding mooting programme, offering undergraduate and postgraduate students the opportunity to participate in an extensive range of competitions, both internal and external. Information on the following competitions is set out below:
Shearman & Sterling
University of Oxford Moot Competition
Undergraduate
Inter-collegiate (Cuppers) Mooting Competition
ESU-Essex
Court Chambers National Mooting Competition
OUP
and BPP National Mooting Competition
Weekly
Law Reports Annual Mooting Competition
Philip
C Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition
International
Roman Law Moot Court Competition
Oxford
v Cambridge Clifford Chance Roman Law Moot Court Competition
Monroe
E Price International Media Law Moot Court Competition
Oxford
International Intellectual Property Moot
Oxford
Law Society Mooting Competitions
The Faculty Mooting Officer is Dr James Edelman. In 2008, the Faculty has appointed two postgraduate students as Mooting Co-ordinators to assist in the administration and expansion of the mooting programme in Oxford. A number of new internal competitions are contemplated, and the Faculty will consider entering teams in additional external competitions in which there is sufficient interest. For any queries or suggestions about mooting, please email Paschalis Paschalidis or Benjamin Spagnolo at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk .
What is mooting?
A moot court competition simulates an appeal hearing, in which participants analyse a problem, research the relevant law, prepare brief written submissions, and present oral argument. Mooting problems are typically designed to promote argument in areas of the law that are unsettled or subject to recent developments. Mooting competitions require competitors to engage with legal issues, and to enhance their skills of legal research and analysis, as well as their skills of persuasive argument, in the formal context of an appellate court. Mooting afford participants the opportunity to develop an understanding of substantive legal principles, to construct and defend legal argument, to collaborate closely with teammates, and to interact with academic staff, practitioners and judges in an environment that is both rewarding and enjoyable.
Shearman & Sterling University of Oxford Moot Competition
The Shearman & Sterling competition has become established as the most prestigious mooting competition within the University. On the basis of written outlines of argument, twelve teams of two students are selected to present oral argument in a series of “lightning” moots conducted in a single day in Hilary Term. In past years, the Grand Final moot has been judged by a member of the House of Lords, the Court of Appeal or the High Court. Numerous cash prizes are awarded, and the names of members of the winning team are inscribed on the trophy displayed in the Bodleian Law Library. In addition, the highest-placed undergraduate team is offered the option to represent Oxford in the ESU-Essex Court Chambers National Mooting Competition in the following year.
For
further details, contact Benjamin Spagnolo at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk .
The Shearman & Sterling competition problem is released in November; written outlines of argument are due in 0th week of Hilary Term; and the oral rounds take place in 3rd week of Hilary Term.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
This
competition is open to postgraduate students.
Undergraduate Inter-collegiate (Cuppers) Mooting Competition
The Law Joint
Consultative Committee is proposing to conduct the first annual inter-collegiate
mooting competition for undergraduates in Trinity Term 2009. Further information
will be added when available.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
ESU-Essex Court Chambers National Mooting Competition
Founded in 1972 as the Observer Moot, the ESU-Essex Court Chambers National Mooting Competition, organised by the English-Speaking Union and sponsored by Essex Court Chambers, is the largest and oldest of its kind in the United Kingdom. The competition involves knock-out rounds held throughout the academic year and hosted by competing universities across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Semi-Finals and Final are held in London in June. In addition to other prizes awarded, the winning team receives the prestigious Silver Mace. The eligible undergraduate team that placed highest in the previous year's Shearman & Sterling University of Oxford Moot Competition is offered the option of representing Oxford in the ESU-Essex Court Chambers National Mooting Competition.
For
further details, contact Benjamin Spagnolo at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk
See
also: http://www.essexcourt.net/mooting/ .
The first rounds of the ESU-Essex Court Chambers National Mooting Competition must be conducted by mid-December; and the Semi-Finals and Final take place in London in June.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
OUP and BPP National Mooting Competition
Oxford University Press and BPP Law School conduct an annual national mooting competition that attracts more than 50 teams from across England, Scotland and Wales. Following preliminary rounds conducted throughout the academic year, four teams compete in the final of the competition held at BPP Holborn in London in June. The University of Oxford team won this competition in 2006-2007 and, in addition to other prizes, the winning team members were offered the opportunity to participate in BPP Law School's pro bono programme. An undergraduate team is selected to represent Oxford in the OUP and BPP Law School National Mooting Competition on the basis of applications submitted in Hilary Term each year.
For
further details, contact Benjamin Spagnolo at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk
See
also: http://www.oup.co.uk/oxfordtextbooks/law/mooting/ .
The first rounds of the OUP and BPP National Mooting Competition must be conducted by mid-December; and the Final takes place in London in June.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
Weekly Law Reports Annual Mooting Competition
The Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales administers the Weekly Law Reports Annual Mooting Competition. The competition comprises five knock-out rounds and is organised on a regional basis for the preliminary rounds and a national basis from the Quarter-Finals onwards. In recent years, the Final has been held in the grand setting of the Old Council Chambers of The Law Society in London. The aim of the competition is to encourage all law students to test their advocacy skills through mooting, not merely those who aspire to be called to the bar. An undergraduate team is selected to represent Oxford in the Weekly Law Reports Annual Mooting Competition on the basis of applications submitted in Michaelmas Term each year.
For
further details, contact Benjamin Spagnolo at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk
See also: http://www.lawreports.co.uk/Mooting/MootHome.htm .
The first rounds of the Weekly Law Reports Annual Mooting Competition must be conducted by mid-November; and the Final takes place in London in March.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
Philip C Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition
Jessup is a public international law moot court competition in which more than 500 universities participate world-wide. The competition was established 50 years ago and is run by the International Law Students Association. The case typically involves complex issues of public international law, ranging from State responsibility to the law of sea, human rights law and environmental law. Successful teams at the UK national rounds in London go on to compete in the Shearman & Sterling international rounds, which take place every spring in Washington, DC. The undergraduate team selected to represent Oxford prepares memorials (written pleadings) and oral argument for the two parties to the dispute. Jessup is a demanding competition and requires a lot of hard work but Oxford teams have been very successful in recent years, reaching the octo-finals in Washington, DC in 2007 and winning the 6th Best Memorial Award in 2008. In 2008, the Oxford team was also declared the UK White & Case Jessup Champion.
For
further details, contact Paschalis Paschalidis at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk
See also: http://www.ilsa.org/jessup/ .
The Jessup Compromis is released in September; written memorials are due in January; national rounds take place in London in January-February; and the Shearman & Sterling international rounds are held in Washington in March-April.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
International Roman Law Moot Court Competition
The International Roman Law Moot Court Competition is organised under the auspices of the Institute Mohammed Ali for the Research of the Eastern Tradition (IMARET) in Greece. The inaugural competition, dedicated to the memory of Professor P Zepos, was held in 2008, and was sponsored inter alia by Athens law firm Zepos & Yannopoulos. The purpose of the event is to bring together students and academics from different European jurisdictions and to promote the study of Roman law and the common legal heritage of Europe. Participating universities enter teams of four undergraduate students. The moot problem involves complex issues of Roman private law, encompassing delict, contract and property law. The preliminary rounds are conducted in Imaret Hotel and the final in the Roman Forum at the archaeological site of Philippi. The moot competition is combined with a conference open to the general public, at which academics from participating universities present contributions on a specific theme selected for each conference. Oxford won the competition in 2008.
For
further details, contact Paschalis Paschalidis at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk .
The moot problem is released in Hilary Term; and the competition takes place in Kaval and Philippi in Greece in spring.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
Oxford v Cambridge Clifford Chance Roman Law Moot Court Competition
The Oxford v Cambridge Clifford Chance Roman Law Moot Court Competition has the purpose of bringing together students who have an interest in Roman Law from two ancient rivals: the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. The objective of the Varsity Roman Law Moot is primarily educational: it assists students in comprehending a compulsory course in the Oxford and Cambridge syllabus. However, it is also a very enjoyable social and intellectual event for the team of four undergraduate students from each University, and for the coaches and academics involved. The moot problem typically involves a mixture of issues and disputes in the field of Roman private law, including delict, contract and property law.
For
further details, contact Paschalis Paschalidis at mooting@law.ox.ac.uk .
The Varsity Roman Law Moot, which is held alternately in Oxford and in Cambridge, takes place in Trinity Term; the problem is released at the beginning of Trinity.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
Monroe E Price International Media Law Moot Court Competition
The Price Moot Court Competition is organised by the Programme in Comparative Media Law & Policy at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies within the Faculty of Law, in collaboration with the International Media Lawyers Association. The competition, which is open to students from around the world, focuses on media law and policy, including, in particular, freedom of expression as set out in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The competition is set before a fictitious body, the “Universal Freedom of Expression Court”.
For
further details, see: http://pricemootcourt.socleg.ox.ac.uk/ .
The case for the Price Moot Court Competition is released in September; teams must register by November; written memorial are due in January; and the oral rounds take place in Oxford in March.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
This
competition is open to postgraduate students.
Oxford International Intellectual Property Moot
The Intellectual Property Moot is held annually in Oxford over a weekend in March. It is hosted by the Oxford Intellectual Property Research Centre and organised by a committee of DPhil and FHS students with an interest in intellectual property. The competition invites teams from universities around the world to prepare written submissions and present oral argument on each side of a hypothetical intellectual property law problem set by experts in the field. The event, now in its seventh year, continues to grow; in 2008, there were 23 teams, from south east Asia, Australia, North America, and Europe. The competition's judges are drawn from academia, legal practice and the judiciary.
For
further details, see: http://www.oiprc.ox.ac.uk/moot.html .
The problem for the Intellectual Property Moot is released in October; written submissions are due in December; and the oral phase of the competition takes place in Oxford in March.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
This
competition is open to students enrolled in a taught postgraduate law programme
who have no legal practice experience.
The Gray's Inn Moot is organised by the Oxford Gray's Inn Society, a student society that promotes understanding of the bar and fosters links between present members of the Inn and would-be barristers at Oxford. The Moot, which takes place in Trinity Term each year, typically involves a problem focussing on first-year subjects such as criminal law, contract and tort. Eight teams will be selected on the basis of written skeleton arguments submitted in the first round. Participants may enter the first round as individuals or in a team; after the first round, each competitor is judged separately and the two best mooters advance to the next round.
The Gray's Inn Moot takes place in Trinity Term each year.
This
competition is open to undergraduate students.
Oxford Law Society Mooting Competitions
The Oxford Law Society is a student society. It is not run by the Law Faculty and membership is open to all members of the University. The Society organises the three-round Crown Office Mooting Competition each term, as well as a Mooting Masterclass and a Novice Speedmoot.
For
further information, see: http://www.oxfordlawsoc.com/ .
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