Mooting Society

INTRODUCTION

What is Mooting?

A simple way of describing it is as a competitive mock court hearing. It differs from a mock trial by accepting the facts of the hypothetical case and concentrates specifically on the relevant points of law. For this reason, there are no witnesses, evidence or jury.

What happens?

You moot in teams of two, with a junior and a senior counsel. Junior counsel speaks for 10 minutes followed by senior counsel who will speak for slightly longer, around 15 minutes, usually dealing with the more contentious issues.

Why Moot?

Mooting is a great opportunity to experience law in a practical setting. There are so many reasons why mooting is beneficial to your time at law school. Key reasons include: developing your CV, improving your legal research & analysis, practicing your legal skills in a safe environment, legal networking, joining a great social scene and gaining the possibility of winning a free trip to the UKSC in London. Our final in the 2018/19 session was held in the UKSC before Lord Reed, with the final in 2017/18 held in the High Court of Justiciary in Glasgow, before Lord Matthews. The possibility of appearing in court and receiving feedback from judges themselves is invaluable. So, from all of us at the committee, best wishes and enjoy!

How to Join the Mooting Society?

Scroll to the bottom of this page and add our free membership to your basket, then you can check out and confirm your membership by pressing the basket in the top right hand corner.

SCHEDULE - Semester 1

September

October

November

December

SCHEDULE - Semester 2

January

February

March

April

TRAINING RESOURCES

(1) INTRODUCTION TO MOOTING

This is the introductory session to the mooting society, which will go over the basics of what mooting is and what you should expect as a member. Everyone is encouraged to come along to this session to ask any questions they might have and get to know the committee and other members.

(2) STARTING A MOOT PROBLEM

Starting to work on a moot problem can be tricky, so this session will go through exactly how to begin breaking down and working on a moot problem.

How to Break Down a Case - PowerPoint

Potter v HMA - Moot Problem

(3) WRITING YOUR SUBMISSIONS

The next step in preparing a moot is to start writing your submissions. It is important you structure your submissions correctly to create the most effective argument.

How to Structure Your Submissions - PowerPoint

Skeleton Argument Guide

Submissions Guide

Example Submissions

Example Submissions Annotated

Potter v HMA - Moot Problem

(4) BUILDING A BUNDLE

One of the trickiest parts of mooting is putting together your bundle of authorities. Every authority you reference has to be in your bundle, so you have to make sure it is well structured and easy for the judge to read.

Guide to Downloading Authorities

Guide to Legal Sources

How to Build a Bundle

Example Bundle

(5) ADVOCACY

Finally, the key part of mooting is advocacy. It is important to practice and refine your advocacy skills because the way you deliver your argument is the most important and effective part of mooting.

How to Speak Like a Mooter

(6) TEMPLATES

It is important for your bundles and skeleton arguments to look professional, like they would in a real court. Here are some templates to help you with this.

General Skeleton Argument Template

Criminal Skeleton Argument Template

Civil Skeleton Argument Template

Supreme Court Skeleton Argument Template

(7) OTHER RESOURCES

Here are some other resources which can help you with mooting.

Mooting Handbook

Example Video

Abbreviation Dictionary

Latin Dictionary

GALLERY