1. INTRODUCTION TO MOOTING
Tips and tricks to help you nail the basics
Welcome
Thank everyone for coming – it’s great to see a lot of familiar faces and it was fantastic so many of you could make it tonight.
I will be running the seminar tonight – but I will also be asking my comps team and some previous competitors to give their insights into mooting. While I am not professing to be a mooting expert my background in mooting started right here in this room when I was a fresh faced entrant in the novice moot. Since that experience I have competed in two national competitions, and also completed the moot court course here at uni.
What you can expect to get out of tonight – a lot of helpful hints, and tips particularly geared towards preparing for a moot
Just a reminder that at the end of this session the Comps Team invite anybody who’s interested to come along to Austin & Austin for a drink.

2. ADVOCACY IS A SKILL OF PERSUASION
Moot & Advocacy
What is a moot?
Simulated Court Experience where you will engage in APPELLATE ADVOCACY
What does it mean to be an advocate?
Good legal advocates:
Use facts and the law to support or defend a position;
Choose words purposefully;
Put on a performance – an advocates style and manner can be vital to success
ADVOCACY IS A SKILL OF PERSUASION
How can you be more persuasive?
Present law and in conjunction with each other in order to persuade;
Choose and use words carefully, and maintain composure under pressure;
Always remember, advocacy as a performance…style and manner are absolutely vital!!

3. PRELIMINARY REPARATION

4. 1. The Question
Questions are released a week prior to your round night
During that week you (& your team mate) MUST prepare:
Written Memoranda; and
Oral Submissions
Why????
Written memo’s put opposing counsel/judge on notice and help you organise your own argument;
You must submit your memo, and will receive your opponent’s memo the day prior to your round;
Oral submissions are bound by your written memo;
Oral submissions are your chance to convince the judge – you may address or pre-empt points made by the opposition to strengthen your argument.

5. 2. Analyse Facts READ THE QUESTION Establish: Whose side are you on?
Appellant or respondent?
Originally plaintiff or defendant?
What is the jurisdiction? Might this indicate anything about the problem?
State Supreme Court – which State?
High Court – appeal from which State?
Federal Court
Is there anything that stands out in the facts?
Missing information;
Important concessions.
I know it sounds obvious – but really. READ THE QUESTION. Read it once. Put it down. Come back and read it again. You will be surprised the nuances you will pick up when you read the question a second time. I personally like to use two different coloured highlighters.
After these first couple of readings it is a great start to establish the following:
Who are you acting for? Whose side are you on?
In some questions this can be tricky. There will be lots of names and several parties. Be absolutely certain if your client seeks to uphold a judgment or challenge one.
Do you agree with the initial judgement?
What is the jurisdiction?
Is there anything that stands out?

6. READ THE QUESTION AGAIN
3. Analyse Law
READ THE QUESTION AGAIN
Establish:
The legal issues?
What are the grounds of appeal?
What has been conceded?
What is the best outcome for each party?
Sources of law
Is there legislation?
What are the relevant provisions?
How old are the provisions?
Have you been given cases?
Now we get to the legal part of analysis
You have to determine what the legal problem is that faces your client and the crux of each case.
At this stage I like to come up with a bit of a case theory which addresses the grounds of appeal, what issues have already been conceded, what the most important issues are and then what the best outcome is for my client (generally winning).
A case theory could be:….
It is also really helpful to then look at the sources of law you will be using – does the question address legislation? If so…probably look at that legislation.
In the FYM and Novice Moot almost all of the questions will give you a preliminary case list. This is to make sure you are starting your research in the right areas.

7. 4. Meet with Team mate Decide a meeting time (if necessary) ASAP
Decide how do you want to divide the material?
Who will address each ground of appeal?
Who will be senior/junior counsel?
Speaking time (either 15/15, 20/10, 10/20)

8. RESEARCH

9. 1. General Research Consult a generalist source:
Now you have read the question, understand the issues and have decided which ground of appeal you will address…
Consult a generalist source:
A textbook (law librarians are your best friends);
Law Library website – case bases and encyclopaedias;
Note: You should consult a general source even if you have been given a case list as you will want to read the cases against the backdrop of a good understanding of the areas of law and give yourself the best opportunity to find recent authority;
Never underestimate the power of Google.
If there’s legislation:
Consult a textbook;
‘Noteup’ the section of the legislation you’ve been given (AUSTLII);
Note down any key cases that appear in that search.

10. 2. Detailed Research
Look up the cases you’ve been given and any other seminal cases you have read about
Initially a good case summary can be useful to determine the overall thrust of the case (gooooogle);
IF YOU INTEND TO USE A CASE READ IT IN FULL;
Understand the reasoning of the judges;
Learn to use the library’s resources and access full cases;
Note which cases are binding, and which are persuasive.
Use the key cases you’ve found as a springboard for more detailed research if it is appropriate
The best researchers will use cases which establish key elements of law; and
Also cases which are factually analogous

11. Research cont… What if there is very little Australian authority?
Is there authority from the UK?
Is there authority from another jurisdiction – NZ, Canada, the US?
You can use all of these, but remember these cases are merely persuasive.

12. DRAFTING WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS

13. 1. Putting research into words
Now you have READ THE QUESTION, ANALYSED and UNDERSTOOD the facts and RESEARCHED the law its time to DRAFT your memo:
The purpose of written submissions is to outline your argument – have a clear idea of what your argument is!!!
Memos must be clear, precise, relevant and REFERENCED;
Use headings;
Presume ignorance; and
Keep plenty of white space.
See Example Memo

14. 2. Anatomy of a written submission
1. Broad proposition of law:
Case Name (Date) Citation, Pinpoint
1.1 Secondary legal proposition:
1.2 Secondary legal proposition:
1.3 Application of legal propositions to the facts
2. Second broad proposition of law OR submission made in the alternative.
One way to approach written submissions is by IRAC
ISSUE: Make sensible concessions to limit issues – you may not have to address absolutely everything!
RULE: If the legal rule requires something specific, demonstrate this
APPLICATION: Reference specific factual material which demonstrates your point
CONCLUSION: Set-out and arrange your submissions in a way that will make them as comprehensible, and as persuasive, as possible. Use headings to guide the Court if necessary.

15. Case Name (Year) Citation, Pinpoint
1. In order for unconscionable dealing to be established, one party must have been in a position of special disadvantage vis-à-vis the other party:
Case Name (Year) Citation, Pinpoint
1. 1 Age and infirmity may constitute a special disability:
1.2 In the instant case, the plaintiff’s advanced age and serious illness constituted a special disability.
Do not propose facts as law.
1. The plaintiff’s age of 70 years and her dementia at the time of the transaction placed her at a special disadvantage vis-à-vis the respondent:
Case Name (Year) Citation, Pinpoint
WRONG
The cases you cite won’t provide authority for the particular facts in this instance constituting a special disability. They provide an articulation of the broad principles. As such, you shouldn’t be citing a case for this proposition unless the ratio of that case was that 70 year olds with particular illnesses will be suffering from a special disadvantage.

16. 3. Basics of Drafting Establish your core submissions
eg, breach of contract = contract existed + express terms breached
Support each proposition of law with at least one authority
High Court authority is the dream;
More authority does not = more persuasive;
It’s not how much you have, it’s how you use it.
Establish any alternative arguments
An argument which you can rely upon as a last resort
Eg, breach of contract = if no express terms breached, in the alternative implied terms breached
Establish where policy arguments might be necessary
Sometimes the law might be so vague the court has to take into account broader public conceptions of the issue

17. What is good about this memo? Things to avoid:
SEE EXAMPLE MEMO
What is good about this memo?
Things to avoid:
Overusing authority, particularly for uncontroversial statements;
Failing to persuade the court not to follow (or disregard) persuasive authority;
‘Cherry picking’ quotes from cases and cobbling them together without ever considering the over-arching principles;
Making factual errors;
Using authority which has been overruled or later expressed as being confined to its facts;
Spending large amounts of time reciting the facts of all the case you cite – don’t waste time unless the factual analogy is relevant.

18. PRE SUBMISSION CHECKLIST
Have you ensured that all your materials refer to the correct parties?
Have you ensured each of your authorities is listed in your List of Authorities?
Are all your citations AGLC compliant?
Do you have pinpoints where they’re necessary?
Have you thoroughly proofread your submissions for spelling or grammatical errors?
Are your submissions a maximum of three pages (with an additional one page List of Authorities)
Have you included your time allocations?
Are your submissions in 12 pt Times New Roman font with 2 cm margins?

19. ORAL SUBMISSIONS

20. 1. Appearances Appearances Only senior counsel has to do ‘appearances’
Before oral argument occurs the judge will ask for appearances
May it please the court.
Your honour, my name is Jones and I appear for the appellant/respondent in this matter with my junior counsel Smith. We will each reserve 15 minutes speaking time.

21. 2. Oral Argument Speak clearly and don’t rush Silence is not the enemy
This is the time to be persuasive…
Be passionate (not aggressive)
Be confident – use good body language and tone of voice
Draw attention to analogous cases, draw upon legal reasoning in other cases that you can apply
Use the facts
Ensure you leave time to answer questions
YOU DON’T NEED TO ADDRESS EVERYTHING

22. 3. Preparing for Questions
Remember formalities, but engage with the judge
Make eye contact
Consider the question carefully (silence is not your enemy!)
NEVER brush off a question even if you will address it later in your submissions
What the judge wants to know NOW is more important than anything you could say later

23. 4. Handy Phrases Agreeing with a judge: Disagreeing with a judge:
Yes, your honour, we respectfully adopt that point. We would therefore submit that…
Thankyou your honour, that is an excellent question which goes to the crux of the issue…and on that point we would submit…
Disagreeing with a judge:
No, your honour, we respectfully disagree/differ on that point and would rather submit that…
Your Honour, I have put that at its highest and with your leave I will move to my next submission.
Absolutely no idea what to do – ask to rephrase or buy time
Your honour, I understand your question pertains to the issue of…
That is an important question your honour, may I take a moment to collect my thoughts?

24. HOW TO MAXIMIZE YOUR SCORE & GET TO FINALS

25. 1. Scoring Criteria
The judges are given set criteria to apply. These are judging each individual on their:
Organization
Development of argument (know the law and facts)
Questions from the bench
Manner and Expression
Quality of written submissions
There are some things that will also help you score well:
SUIT UP!!!!
Speak formally and always use ‘Your Honour’

26. 2. Progression to Finals
Competitors will progress through to the Quarter Final based on the following procedure of ranking:
The eight competitors with the highest win-loss ratios will automatically progress through
If two or more competitors have tied win-loss ratios they will be separated on the basis of:
Head-to-head;
then Margins;
then Points.
The same procedure is used for the semi and grand finals

27. FINAL TIPS

28. KEY PREPARATION
READ THE CASES – know what the principles of law are. If you quote a case know which judge you are quoting, and the pinpoint.
CITE CLEARLY – if you do not have a copy of the AGLC…GET ONE!
PRACTICE YOUR APPEARANCES – there is nothing more confidence shaking than forgetting your own name – practice makes perfect
PRACTICE YOUR SUBMISSIONS IN A CONVERSATIONAL STYLE – train as you play. A moot is a conversation, not a speech, so prepare as such.
Always read the cases you cite. Or at the very least know:
What the judgment was;
Who were in the majority and who were in dissent and why?
You will lose marks for sloppy citations
Provide your judge with a brief summary, or a ‘road map’ of your argument before you get going.
Do not pre-prepare a speech. Mooting is a conversation with the judge, not a public speaking contest. If you know your argument and your citations you will perform better than a counterpart who rehearses a speech.

29. Useful Resources - Mooting Handbook
The Competitions Mooting Handbook is an invaluable guide to mooting
Contains vital hints, tips and some basic style guides for approaching problem questions and competition nights – it also has example problems and approaches
If ever in doubt always check the handbook for information!
Thomas:
Point out the variety of resources that you can use.
Note that collusion with other competitors is not allowed. If a competitor has a question that cannot be answered by any resources then ask anyone on the comps team and we can point them in the right direction.
Additionally the comps team will be sending out handy articles, or links over the course of the competition.
Also advise that there are many online resources including youtube videos, which can aid in prep.

30. Questions? If in doubt don’t ever hesitate to contact
Elizabeth, the First Year Moot Coordinator:
Katie, the Novice Moot Coordinator:
Or Ashleigh the Competitions Director: