LAW4805 - Mooting and advocacy competition - 2017

Admission to this unit is by competitive application. The unit will be capped depending on the number of competitions offered from year to year. Criteria for selection will include course progression, marks in completed units, experience or skill in mooting, debating or other advocacy (assessed through an oral advocacy exercise).

Students will be allocated to teams for various external mooting competitions in which they will represent Monash University. These will vary from year to year, but may include:

Michael Kirby Contract Moot

Shine Torts Moot

Gibbs Constitutional Law Moot

Administrative Appeals Tribunal Moot

National Women's Moot

Castan Centre Human Rights Moot

National Environmental Moot

National Family Law Moot

Oxford Intellectual Property Moot

World Human Rights Moot

International Humanitarian Law Moot

Seminars are provided on advocacy techniques, research techniques and the drafting of court documents. Students will then work as a team on the problem relevant to their assigned competition, including researching the problem, preparing written submissions and formulating oral arguments. Attendance at scheduled sessions is compulsory.

Where permitted by the rules of the respective competitions, students will be invited to critique the practice performances of their peers in other competitions. Regular practice moots will also be held for each team, overseen by academics and external guest judges with expertise in the relevant field.

By the end of this unit, students will be able to:

• Analyse a practical problem to identify the legal issues
• Plan and execute a legal research task independently
• Conduct legal research and locate appropriate case law, legislation and secondary materials
• Draft concise written summaries of complex legal arguments
• Interpret and apply legislative provisions in solving a legal problem
• Engage in self-directed learning
• Orally present a complex legal argument in a concise and compelling manner
• Answer legal questions from a judge or arbitrator in real time
• Identify and evaluate relevant ethical and moral issues in legal situations
• Work as a team in solving a legal problem
• Critique the work of peers in a professional manner

Participation in seminars: 10% - This includes both class participation and engagement in constructive critique of other students' presentations.

Written submissions: 30% - Group mark (approximately 1500 words for each of the appellant/applicant and respondent)

Oral presentation: 60% - Individual mark, judged in the final practice moot before competition.

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. The unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.

See also Unit timetable information

Dr Lisa Spagnolo

For students who commenced their LLB (Hons) course in 2015 or later:

LAW1111; LAW1114; LAW1112; LAW1113; LAW2101; LAW2102. Note: Students can still be

completing LAW2102 at the time of applying for selection.

For students who commenced their LLB course prior to 2015: LAW1100 OR LAW1101 and

LAW1102 or LAW1104; LAW2100 OR LAW2101 and LAW2102