1L Moot court advice? Forum

[Netopalis]

Haldo,
My school, like many others, offers a moot court competition to all 1L students. Since my plan is to go into prosecution and/or litigation, and since I'd like to get involved in moot court, it seemed like a good opportunity. However, I have absolutely no experience. To everyone who is experienced in Moot Court: What would you recommend doing before the case is given to us? Are there any books that I should read to improve my writing or oral argument skills? Do you have any insights that might be helpful in doing well in this competition? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Netopalis

[Helmholtz]

Haldo,
To everyone who is experienced in Moot Court: What would you recommend doing before the case is given to us? Are there any books that I should read to improve my writing or oral argument skills? Do you have any insights that might be helpful in doing well in this competition? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

+1

[viking138]

Hmm I'm in the middle of my 1L moot court experience so I'm not sure how helpful my advice is. But for what it's worth, a great oral advocacy book is Scalia's The Art of Persuading Judges. Really great tips and I believe it goes into briefs as well (although I've only read half so I could be mistaken).

Otherwise, just utilize IRAC. I'm not clear on if you're competing for a spot or just trying to do well within a school-wide competition, but I think making sure to use IRAC will help a lot. For your brief, really think about the fact situation and read it several times before you jump in. Being super familiar with the facts is essential.

Good luck!

[Paichka]

Practice, practice, practice.

Get together with other people who are doing moot court. Get a room where you can stand at a podium, and have your friends sit across from you in a panel. Start arguing, and practice responding to the questions they throw at you. This will help you learn to anticipate questions and formulate solid answers in advance--that way you can address the judge's question succinctly without getting thrown, and quickly move back to your outline. This is probably the most important piece of advice -- the more you practice, the more comfortable you'll get with your argument, and the better able you'll be to anticipate questions.

The best way to do well in moot court is not to let yourself get too far off of your argument. You want to go into the oral argument with a basic outline of the points you want to hit -- as the judges ask you questions, find a way to work your answer back into your argument outline. Never cut the judges off, and NEVER be dismissive of their questions. Make sure to answer the question that they ask you. Before you launch into your explanation of your answer, actually GIVE them an answer -- "Yes, your honor, our position is that ______". Also, don't be afraid to tell them if you don't know the answer to something. "Your honor, I don't have that answer for you at the moment, but I will get that answer for you following oral argument." The worst thing you can do is try to bullshit. If they ask about some crazy case you haven't heard of, don't get thrown.

Speak slowly and control any verbal tics. Practice in front of a mirror so that you notice if you're overly handsy, or you rock from side to side, or blink weird, or whatever.

But yeah. Practice.

[random5483]

1L moot court? I thought moot court was something you join in the second year?

[seriousstudenttt]

http://www.amazon.com/Little-Book-Oral- ... 0837705576