In
law school, Mooting is considered as one of the most crucial co-circular activity.
Everyone wants to be a good mooter, but unfortunately, many cannot.
So,
what are the things which make a person good mooter?
In
this series of articles, we will find out: How to be a good mooter in few easy
steps?
Before
moving forward, it is crucial to understand:
What is Mooting and why it is so important in law school?
Mooting
is often considered as an extra-curricular activity in the law schools, but it
is actually a co-curricular activity because of its great importance. Moot
court is a simulated court or arbitration proceeding, which encompasses
drafting of memorials or memoranda and one speaking round, where you present
your arguments in oral form in front of the judges or arbitrators. And, the participants
of Mooting are generally known as mooters.
Mooting
is something which you cannot do as leisure time activity; however, it needs
full dedication. Participants are often found to be spending even a whole
semester for researching and writing their memorials and for practising for
their oral arguments.
In
most of the moot court competitions, each side contains three members (two
speakers and one researcher). Generally, each speaker has to speak for 10-25
minutes in which he or she will come across some rebuttals. Finally, based on
the scores of the memorial and the speaking rounds, the qualifications of the mooters
are determined (whether for the knockouts or the competitions).
Now,
it is clear that for every moot court competition, there are two key elements:
1. Memorial
2. Speaking
In
this series of articles, you are going to learn about “How to write a good
memorial and How to be a good speaker in a moot court competition?”
What is Memorial?
It
is nothing but a legal document which contains argumentation.
Why is it so important?
The
score of memorials is taken into account for the selection or rejection of a
team.
It
becomes the foundation of your oral arguments, which you will present in your
speaking rounds.
It
has an impression on Judges as it helps them in guiding.
Parts of Memorials:
It varies from competition to competition, but generally, it contains the following parts:
Ø Cover
Page
Ø Table
of Content
Ø Index
of Authorities
Ø Statement
of Jurisdiction
Ø Statement
of Facts
Ø Question
presented
Ø Summary
of Arguments
Ø Pleadings
(Main Arguments)
Ø Prayer
Now,
in any memorial, the most crucial part is Pleading, which contains all the main
arguments.
So,
let’s start with pleadings first.
It
can be divided into two parts: 1. External Structure, 2. Internal Structure
1. External Structure:
It consists of all the primary legal aspects of your issues, which includes:
Division
of Headings: Main arguments followed by ingredients of the argument.
Content
of Headings: Plain assertion in your favour. It encompasses your primary
argument and also your alternative arguments if any.
Roadmap: It helps the reader to navigate your memorial easily.
2. Internal Structure:
Here, you form your arguments in the best possible methods to convey
your arguments easily and logically. So, there are two forms of methods which
are generally used to build your internal arguments under each heading. Following
are the two best way to structure your arguments:
1.CLFAC, 2. IRAC
This
article will discuss only about CLFAC structure as it is more preferable, but
in case you want to know about IRAC, please mention it in the comment.
What is CLFAC?
C
(Conclusion): In the Heading, you should write the answer (one line answer) to
the question which is nothing but your conclusion of the question presented.
L
(Law): Under this part, your research materials should be laid down, which
generally encompasses relevant laws (Statute, Cases, et al.). Please note that
under this part, you must focus only on those laws which have a substantial
binding value. Also, do not ignore the procedural laws in toto. Finally, please do not over cite here unless it is
inevitable.
F
(Fact): Please cite only relevant facts to make the division with law apparent,
and do not mention those facts which are not directly related to this issue.
You can also make any reasonable inference from the facts.
A
(Analysis): Here, you will make the application of laws to the facts. For doing
so, you can use the precedents, landmark judgment, et al. Also, you can use
some articles (especially in matters of International laws) to justify your
position, and in case you find something authorities against your position,
even then you can use that authority to differentiate your scenario with the
given scenario, this will help you to make your argument persuasive.
C
(Reasoned Conclusion): Here, you should give your conclusion along with the legal
reasoning, unlike the conclusion which you have mentioned in the first step
where you have to mention the only conclusion without legal reasoning.
There
may be exceptions of CLFAC rule where you can acknowledge your weaknesses or some
unfavourable laws.
Moreover,
this structure is not very rigid. You can make changes as per your suitability
but always keep in mind that you focus must be on conveying your arguments in a more structured way so that the judges can easily understand your reasoning and
also, judges often appreciate those memorials which have followed the certain structure
to base their arguments.
Thank
you for reading.
We
are going to discuss other elements of the memorial and also about the speaking
rounds in our subsequent articles of this series. Moreover, we are looking
forward to adding some of the best memorials so that you can understand the
concepts better.
If
you have any doubt or any suggestions regarding this article, please comment us
below.
We
will reply to your comment as soon as possible.
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