MOOTING: MEANING, PROCESS, SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES FOR

IT’S SIUCCESS

I. MOOTING: MEANING

Moot means something open to question, i.e., debatable. Moot court tells the mock court wherein
students, specifically law students, debate any imaginary cases to get an overview of litigation
practice. It takes place in front of the judge, and students in moot (called mooters) argue on the
point of law.
A moot court competition simulates a court hearing (usually an appeal against a final decision),
in which participants analyse a problem, research the relevant law, prepare written submissions,
and present oral argument. Moot problems are typically set in areas of law that are unsettled or
that have been subject to recent developments. They usually involve two grounds of appeal,
argued by each side.

Mooting is not the same as public speaking or debating, although it shares some common
elements with these activities. It is a specialised application of the art of persuasive advocacy. It
has been part of the process of training lawyers for centuries and plays an important role in legal
education at Oxford.

II. REASONS TO MOOT

There are many reasons to moot. Mooting enables students:-

 to engage with and think deeply about interesting and topical legal issues;

 to enhance their advocacy, legal research and writing skills;

 to work closely with and learn from their peers; and

 to demonstrate their interest in advocacy and competence as an advocate to prospective
employers. Most students find mooting to be intellectually rewarding and highly enjoyable. It
can be nerve-racking and frustrating but it is a lot of fun.

 It helps an individual develop communication skills that help him/her put forward a strong
point of view.

 It helps law students get an overview of how the cases are argued in the court of law.

 It helps the students to inculcate various debating/arguing skills, which helps them in real-life
litigation.

 Participating more in moot court helps law students to build confidence to present the case in
front of the judge.

 Participating regularly in the moot court helps the students get familiar with the proceedings
in actual courtrooms.

III. QUALITIES OF A GOOD MOOTER:-

A good mooter is one………….
 one who can make light out of the complex
 who can find solution of the problem by seeing the heart of the problemand can turn
complexity onto simplicity by bringing sense and rationality to a potentially difficult
situation.
 A good mooter always has a lot to say but a great mooter doesn’t need to say too much
but they get straight to the heart of it and their solution is all about simplicity rationality and
elegance.

IV. DO’S AND DON’TS WHILE MOOTING

1. Don’t rush: While being in an oral argument, remember not to rush, have an adequate speed
while speaking, and clarify words.
2. Conscious Argument: Ensure that the idea presented by you is correct; it is always advisable
to write the argument beforehand to frame the theories and facts in a particular sequence, which
ultimately helps in speaking these arguments fluently.

3. Be a good listener: Being a mooter makes sure that you listen carefully to your opponents’
arguments. Mooting is not just about presents your argument mooting includes pointing out
weaknesses in the opponent’s arguments.

4. Be respectful: One can never deny that the environment in a court is always heated, but this
doesn’t give anyone a trespass to be disrespectful towards the judge or the opponents. In case
your opponent wrongly cites something, you can express it in a very polite and respectful
manner.

5. Body language: A report published by Oxford University has mentioned that mooters are
given fewer marks during moot because of their lousy body language, and specific activities like
biting nails, rubbing hands show nervousness and anxiety mooter. It becomes essential for the
mooter to moot with a lot of confidence and self-belief.

6. Be straightforward: Many people think it is necessary to make things confusing to win the
argument, but that is not the case. To get the decision in your favor, you must question the right
thing, answer the right thing along with being direct and straightforward.

V. SKILLS THAT AN INDIVIDUAL SHOULD POSSESS TO EXCEL IN

MOOTING

1. Strong communication skills: Communication skills play a significant role in a law student’s
life. Students must have good oral as well as written communication skills. A prominent part of
the skills to be possessed by a mooter is to persuade the judge by his/her convincing ability,
which can only be developed by practicing better communication.
2. Research skills: Research skills not just includes digging around the internet and gathering
information. Researching consists of an individual’s ability to gather data, filter the data to
collect relevant information, and then use it in such a way that turns out totally in your favor.
Students should be able to research the matter, case laws and analyze them in a short period.

3. Logical and analytical: The mooter’s fundamental job is to win the argument and get things
in his favor. Hence, a mooter is supposed to be analytical to understand things better and
simultaneously. Logic in the court of law can never betray an individual. All the laws are
ultimately made out of reason only. Being logical and analytical is something that an individual
cannot compromise on, especially at mooting.

4. Unquestionable people skills and mind-reading ability: An individual while mooting has to
deal with various challenges, and it becomes quite easy to deal with them; you can read people’s
minds (Human psychology), which would ultimately help get the truth out of an individual. It
doesn’t matter if you are an introvert in nature. You have to communicate with people to know
them.

5. Problem-solving ability: An individual can excel in the moot court only if he/she can solve
the problem not just by his opinion but with the help of facts, laws, and he /she could support the
decision by providing evidence.

VI. TIPS/TECHNIQUE FOR SUCCESS OF A MOOT

1. BE CLEAR OF WHAT YOU WANT THE COURT TO DO TO YOU

This is a most common error and very common to most mooters, this is a crucial part of themoot
to which one is supposed to get it right. You should know that
the court is there at your request . Therefore it would want to know what findings want to
make the court toadhere to, or rather what law you want to apply or not to apply. Too often most
candidatesof a moot will be asked why the court should apply your level of reasoning.

You will be making SUBMISSIONS

. These submissions will be your arguments and they are to be clear because they ultimately
become the court’s findings. You could submit that he case of Donoghue vs Stevenson
applies in this scenario…
pray this honorable court to align with is this

2. CONCLUSION FIRST

This is a different perspective from the normal academic process in attempting a

problemquestion as the way we know. The common one is that which starts with an
introductorypart of the statements adduced later a thorough analysis and then conclusion. Now a
mootis not just like the regular form of academia. This is practical advocacy and thus the judge
won’t tolerate to get your conclusion at the end. The court would want to know your stand from
the beginning of your submission by stating it clearly. For instance one could say

first one is to persuade you that….. (here make a

declaration)

. Note that the submission comes first then the support follows

3. ENGAGE THE JUDGES IN YOUR FINDINGS

The moot participant should understand that for any conversation aimed at convincing a person
one must never avoid interaction and in this context interaction with the judges.
You should always remember that you’re making submission and that if your submission is
agreed or accepted then your view of the law will bind all other future cases especially on
subordinate court. Thus the submission is the law making process. It is important the court be
sure of what you want and how you want it. This can be through Ensure that the judge knows
what you want to share and guide them along the process. For example one can say that
to judge…
4. STRUCTURE
This is also a long and important detail to be adhered in a moot court as it brings out thelegal
complexity to simplicity. A good structure is critical so that the judge may not lose where you
are. You have then to have structural independence. My best form of structure is that of Arguing
in series.

ARGUMENT IN SERIES: I will take for instance the issue under discussion is that of Murder,
whether or not the accused is liable for the crime. You have to prove a series of elements as
provide in the penal code such as the Malice aforethought, unlawfulness of the act and the other.
You’re required to be consequent upon another. This helps the court to know where you are,
your chain of argument therein. Your structure will determine your argument and it must be in
sequential showing the flow.

In nutshell………
 It is critical to engage with the bench. This requires you to bring many skills together
including maintaining eye contact with the judge, speaking at an appropriate volume and
pace, responding directly and accurately to questions and holding the judge’s interest. It also
incorporates a cardinal rule of mooting: never, ever talk while the judge is talking.

 Remember that it is accepted to ask a judge to repeat a question if you do not understand it,
and that it is always best to say 'I regret I am unable to assist your Lordship/Ladyship on that
point' when you really do not know the answer.

 Mooting is not just about presenting propositions of law. An important aspect is applying
those propositions to the facts in order to argue for the result you want. You should be very
familiar with the moot problem and be able to take the judge to relevant paragraphs in it.

 You will often make extensive use of authority in delivering your submissions. You need to
know what principle a given case stands for and if a case is binding on the court before which
the moot is being argued.

 A critical aspect of mooting is time management. You need to be able to expand or contract
your submissions depending on how interventionist the judge is.
 VII. CONCLUSION
The moot court is an essential part to every law student for academic excellency. The modes and
formula in doing it may vary from one moot presenter to another. It would not be wrong to say
that a good mooter would be a good future lawyer. Being a good mooter requires all the skills
and abilities which ultimately have to be possessed by a lawyer too. Hence, it can be concluded
that mooting helps to develop the required skills and ultimately it helps to bring a lawyer out of a
mooter who is ready to face all the challenges in the court of law.