moot court but you don't want to be a litigator? Forum

[CordeliusX]

my title is self-explanatory... apparently if you do well this is a killer time drain. Hypothetically I wouldn't be able to do this sort of thing and have time for anything else - journals etc.

So is it worth it? do firms care, especially if you're not planning on being a litigator? Is being high up on a moot court or mock trial team a star on your OCI resume?

[vanwinkle]

I wonder, if you went into a firm saying you only wanted corporate work, if it would set off red flags to have that on your resume about how truthful you were. They might ask you, "Why are you doing moot court if you don't want to be a litigator?" (Like everything else they ask you about, though, I'm sure there's a right and wrong way to answer that.)

The deeper question is just simply, why do it? It's a good way to show you're learning about the law beyond the classroom, but so are journals, clinics, pro bono projects... You want to show you're really passionate about learning and using the law, and hopefully some initiative; moot court is but one way to do that. It's not a necessity, it's just kind of a default because it's so easy to sign up for.

[green]

my title is self-explanatory... apparently if you do well this is a killer time drain. Hypothetically I wouldn't be able to do this sort of thing and have time for anything else - journals etc.

So is it worth it? do firms care, especially if you're not planning on being a litigator? Is being high up on a moot court or mock trial team a star on your OCI resume?

Moot court is a huge time drain and almost no one asks about it, even if you say you want to be a litigator. It might be one of those "check mark" type things that they just look to see if you did, like a journal, but no one really cares unless you advance far into the competition. I did about 29 OCI interviews and no one ever mentioned it.

[CordeliusX]

Moot court is a huge time drain and almost no one asks about it, even if you say you want to be a litigator. It might be one of those "check mark" type things that they just look to see if you did, like a journal, but no one really cares unless you advance far into the competition. I did about 29 OCI interviews and no one ever mentioned it.

LOL OK then why even bother? Seriously unless you'd do it for free regardless cause you love it so much?

EDIT: do the same considerations hold for mock trial?

[Cavalier]

Doing moot court just to have it on your resume is stupid even if you do want to be a litigator. Better grades will always outweigh any law school activity you can put on your resume, except Law Review.

[vamedic03]

Doing moot court just to have it on your resume is stupid even if you do want to be a litigator. Better grades will always outweigh any law school activity you can put on your resume, except Law Review.

TCR - there are only two reasons to do moot court:

1) You want to do it; or,

2) You have no other substantive activities.

However, as far as moot court being an all-consuming time suck - I think it depends on the school. At UVA, usually at least 1/2 the quarter finalists / finalists for the moot court competition are LR / LR+managing board.

FWIW - I signed up for UVA's moot court competition and withdrew from it once I realized that I had no desire to do it. Also, even when I was interviewing and expressing interest in litigation/appellate I never had a single interviewer ask me if I planned to do moot court.

[Cavalier]

For me, the one time moot court came up in an interview, the interviewer spent the next several minutes telling me not to do moot court. He emphasized that it's a waste of time and that law firms and judges don't care about it in hiring.

[frost]

Had an opposite experience when it came to OCI interviews - had about 5 interviewers who were also in Moot Court when they were students, including one that did extremely well and swept the competition that he was in. They all spent a lot of time talking about Moot Court and how useful/fun it was, and it seemed to be an easy way for me to get on their good side even before the interview started.

That said, as for OP, you really don't sound like you care to be in moot court - so why bother doing it? You're better off putting that time commitment into classes, clinics, or stuff outside law school that you actually care about.

[thuggishruggishbone]

Not being on moot court is a hole on the resume. A lot of employers require grades, journal, and moot court (probably because they can). I'm on a journal, but still got asked in interviews why I wasn't doing moot court (for sa positions in biglaw). Do whatever you can to get on.

[vamedic03]

Not being on moot court is a hole on the resume. A lot of employers require grades, journal, and moot court (probably because they can). I'm on a journal, but still got asked in interviews why I wasn't doing moot court (for sa positions in biglaw). Do whatever you can to get on.

Everyone has different experiences; however, if you have a journal or especially if you have law review, moot court will not be a 'hole on the resume' for most biglaw employers.

[hithere]

yes--do moot court. The competition out there is fierce and anything you can do to distinguish yourself from the next guy will help (i.e., candidate 1 has grades + law review and candidate 2 has grades + law review + moot court, candidate 2 is getting the job)

[BruceWayne]

yes--do moot court. The competition out there is fierce and anything you can do to distinguish yourself from the next guy will help (i.e., candidate 1 has grades + law review and candidate 2 has grades + law review + moot court, candidate 2 is getting the job)

Unless you make the extra mural moot court at your school as a 1L, how can doing moot court help you in time for 2L OCI? Aren't most schools OCI long before any of there moot court competitions?

[MrKappus]

Howrey specifically asked about why I wasn't doing moot court if I wanted to be a litigator. Some super-lit-specific firms might care.