FIRST YEAR MOOT

1. ST PATRICK’S LAW STUDENT SOCIETY FIRSTYEAR MOOT COMPETITORS GUIDE 2014

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS

3. FORWARD Welcome to the 2014 FirstYear Moot! The First Year Moot is an opportunity to apply the law that we have already learnt in a supportively competitive environment tailored to hone our legal skills including research, preparation, oral advocacy and the ability to think quickly under pressure. Individuals will be allocated* to teams of two, with each team having the opportunity to compete twice, exploring the same problem from both sides in round one and two. The highest scoring teams will go on to compete in our grand final. The winning team will be crowned as ACU Law’s first ever mooting winner and will be awarded trophies and their names will be engraved on a winners board. We hope that your mooting experience will be interesting, informative and most of all fun! If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us. Good luck competitors! St Patrick’s Law Student Society - Competitions CONTACT DETAILS For all general enquiries please email lssmelbourne@myacu.edu.au , we are also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/stpatrickslss and will endeavor to get back to you as soon as possible. For all urgent matters please contact Ellen Turner – VP Competitions on 0448 513 188 or Gabrielle Colman – President on 0448 811 509. • PLEASE NOTE: Team allocations will be random in the First Year Moot to ensure that the educational and social experience is evenly distributed amongst students. Competitors from second year on will have the option of choosing their own team or being allocated.

4. IMPORTANT DATES Please take note of important dates. Competitors will be informed of any necessary changes to the below schedule via their student email. Registration is to be completed in person with the registration form completed and signed. • Registration Close is final, late registrations may not be able to compete. • Competitors will be informed of their co-Counsel via their student email. The LSS will inform you of a time in the moot court where team introductions can be made if you are unsure of who your co-Counsel is. If you are unsure how to contact your team member this will be an opportunity for you to be introduced and for contact details to be exchanged. • If you are unable to come at this time please contact the Competitions team and we can arrange a separate time to meet • We ask that all teams have met and exchanged contact details by Wednesday the 7th of August.

5. MOOTING RULES • Each team shall consist of one or two law students acting as barristers. A third member acting as a solicitor may be added to any team at the discretion of the Competitions VP. • Teams will be randomly allocated by the competitions team who reserve the right to add a solicitor to any team to account for uneven registration numbers • Competitors MUST wear corporate attire to all competitions • Upon electing to compete in the Second Year Moot all students must be available for participation in all rounds of the competition. • Pulling out of the competition may result in exclusion from all competitions offered in 2014 unless exceptional circumstances can be demonstrated • Written case submissions must be submitted by 2pm the day beforethe competition. • Each team must hand over 3 printed copies of their written submission by the above deadline. (5 copies are required for a Grand Final moot) • Written submissions must be emailed to lssmelbourne@myacu.edu.au in PDF format • Late submissions will incur point deductions • During the moot, it is up to competitors to adhere to time limits. • Normal court room procedure applies to asking the judge for extensions of time. • It is at the judges discretion as to awarding extra time and this may result in points being deducted • The scoring matrix will be made available to competitors before round one • Disqualification from any stage of the competition may result in competitors being excluded from competing in any competitions in 2014. • The decisions of the LSS Competitions team in relation to the rules or execution of the competition will be final • The Vice-President Competitions reserves the right to alter the rules of competition. • Competitors will be informed of any changes to the rules via their student email

6. COMPETITION STRUCTURE Timeline for the day beforecompetition: 2.00pmAll written submissions are due - Written submissions must be emailed to lssmelbourne@myacu.edu.au AS WELL AS three hard copies given to the LSS Competitions team at a location specified closer to the date - Late submissions will incur a points penalty and/or disqualification at the discretion of the Competitions VP On the day of the competition 3.00pmAll competitors meet to exchange written submissions in order to prepare counter arguments - The location of the exchange will be specified closer to the date - Teams submissions will be marked off a competitors role 5:45 pm All competitors and judges will meet to register - There will be no more preparation for competitors after this time, competitors must remain in the registration room 6.00pm Brief welcome by Competitions Team Competitors and judges will be shown to their respective rooms 6.15pm Moot competitions will commence It is the responsibility of all competitors to ensure that they are available for each round and at all of the times provided for the competitions timeline. Failure to attend any round of the competition may result in exclusion from participating in any competitions in 2014. The times listed above are subject to change and it is the responsibility of individual competitors to continually check their student email for updates as to times and locations.

7. PREPARATION ESSENTIALS TEAMS A mooting team consists of two people, one acting as senior Counsel and the other as junior Counsel. If a third person is added to a team they will act as solicitor and aid in research, argument preparation and support in the courtroom but will not orally present. The roles of Counsel are described further in the ‘How to Moot’ section below. • For teams to be eligible to compete in the First Year Moot they must be currently enrolled in their first year of the LLB course and have successfully completed Contract Law. • 2. RELEASE OF PROBLEMS • The problem will be based on Contractlaw and will see teams appear in an magistrates court for either the appellantor the respondent. All problems will be in the Victorian Jurisdiction unless otherwise stated. The problem will include a set of facts. • The same problem will be used in rounds one and two with teams having the opportunity to represent both sides. • Example 1: Team A is appellantin round one, in round two they will appear as respondent. • Example 2: Team B is respondent in round one, in round two they will appear as appellant. • The Grand Final problem will be different to that of rounds one and two and will be released to the highest scoring teams who are to compete in the final round. • The problems will be released to all competitors at the same time so that there will be no advantage to any team. Any LSS committee member who is registered to compete has been removed from LSS meetings discussing the competition and will not have had any prior access to the problem or additional information. • 3. WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS • Written Submissions should be formatted according to the example submission given in this guide. Submissions must be no more than 2 pages in length, points will be deducted for submissions exceeding 2 pages. • Font must be: • Times New Roman • Size 12 • Justified • Submissions must be handed in by 2pm the day before the competition both in soft copy and hard copy. Details for submitting and exchanging written submissions will be given to competitors closer to the date.

8. 4. DRESS CODE As competitors will be appearing in a mock court, with guest judges from the legal community as well as the judiciary, appropriate clothing is required. Competitors MUST wear corporate attire. For the gentlemen this means suits and ties with shirts tucked in, • For the ladies this means business suit/skirts/dress with appropriate length and of a • conservative nature! • Inappropriate clothing will result in points being deducted from teams and/or disqualification in extreme cases. • 5. SEATING PLAN OF THE COURT • The moot rooms will be set up to reflect the layout of a courtroom • A judge will sit in a table at the front of the room, facing the competitors • Senior Counsel should sit in the chairs closest to the middle of the room • Counsel for the prosecution should sit to the judge’s right. • 6. STRUCTURE OF THE MOOT

9. 7. USE OF LIBRARY RESOURCES No ACU Library books or resources may be brought into the courtroom. This rule is to ensure equal access to university resources for all teams. Similarly if any teams are found to be hiding or hoarding library resources to gain advantage they will be incur a points penalty and/or disqualification 8. SCORING Judges will award each team a score out of 100 points each round. The aggregate score for each team from round one and two will determine placement in the grand final evening. The teams competing in the Grand Final will be awarded scores out of 100, with the team scoring highest crowned as champions. Scores from rounds one and two will not be taken into account in the final scores for the grand final. THE HOW TO MOOT GUIDE Please note that this guide is not designed to be exhaustive and competitors are encouraged to research ‘how to moot’ independently. 1. PREPARATION Preparations are crucial to mooting success! The more prepared a team is, the less stressful the actual competition will be. Mooting is not only a great opportunity for improving legal skills but also an opportunity for socialising with your fellow law students and getting involved with the LSS! 2. RESEARCH Once the relevant areas of law have been determined and the points which arise for argument and decision identified, the next step is to look at primary sources; cases and statute. The ultimate goal is to find a case that directly relates to the set of facts given to you. However, as this is unlikely, students will most probably need to prepare legal analogies and persuasive authorities. It is imperative to keep in mind the hierarchy of courts when conducting research and compiling arguments. For instance a High Court decision will be binding on a case brought before the Victorian Court of Appeal. It is advisable that during your submission you inform the judge whether the authority you are citing is binding or merely persuasive. This is a good way of demonstrating your knowledge as to the operation of precedent in Australian courts.

10. 3. METHODS OF RESEARCH • Start Your Research With Subject Textbooks • Once the relevant area of law has been established, you may find it helpful to look back through your Criminal Law textbook and refresh yourself on the area of research required in the moot. • A textbook will provide a great broad understanding of the area of law while pointing you in the right direction in terms of relevant cases, statute and policy considerations. Remember to look closely at • the footnotes in the textbook as they will contain references to material that will look at the subject in greater depth. • HINT: Journal articles written by legal academics are a great source of information relating to specific, often unresolved, points of law. Mooting problems often contain an unresolved point of law to be contested. Journal articles will provide a considered evaluation of the relevant authorities and statute with a summary and conclusion that you may find very useful in constructing arguments! • However: Do not quote or cite journal articles in your submissions – only cases should be cited! • Use Legal Encyclopedias And Online Research • While Wikipedia may be easy, it will not provide the depth and analysis of cases necessary to be competitive in a moot! • Use the knowledge gained in Semester One’s Legal Reading, Research and Writing unit to search for cases on a particular area of law. LexisNexis and Westlaw are great resources! • Legal encyclopedias may be useful in finding information that is more comprehensive than that contained in the textbooks. • Consult our wonderful Law Librarian if you are having trouble finding specific information. Alternatively the ACU Library - Law website provides extensive links to research information. • PLEASE NOTE: Textbooks, encyclopedias and journal articles are secondary sources and citing these should be avoided in your submissions. • 4. STRUCTURING AN ARGUMENT • The First Year Moot is an opportunity to enhance your ability to construct a logical and coherent argument, putting into practice the skills being learnt all throughout first semester.

11. Applying Principles And Constructing An Argument • Competitors will need to induce principles found in cases and apply them to the facts of the case they are presenting. • As a general starting point, the court will want to know: • What the broad principle of the case is • How it is relevant to the given fact situation • What specific principle of the case should be applied • Are the facts of the cases similar? • Try to pre-empt your opponents as they will try to distinguish the facts of the cases • Apply the principle to the facts of your case – how does the principle help you? • E.g. “The necessary elements of formation of a contract are… “(cite cases after stating general proposition) • “We submit that in this case these elements have not been sufficiently demonstrated… • Don’t forget that you can use other types of argument as well, it is especially helpful to have several arguments prepared for the court. • E.g. “We submit to the court that even if all of the elements of formation are found to exist that…” • Reason by use of legal analogy is acceptable as well. It is Counsel's job to assist the court in making their decision and if no cases containing similar facts, or no persuasive decisions can be found you can strengthen your argument by applying an established principle of law (applying to a different area of law) and apply the reasoning found in the decision to the case before you. • Preparing Your Written Submission • The purpose of a written submission is to help the court understand your argument. It is also a useful tool in summarising your arguments and dividing them between senior and junior Counsel. Please base your written submission on the example given later in this guide. • Each team should have between two and five major submissions. These should be numbered and clearly divided by Counsel, this demonstrates a cohesive team structure to the judges. • Cases being cited should appear throughout the body of the submission, or in a list at the end, but must be included.

12. 4. ORAL PRESENTATION SKILLS • Speak slowly and clearly; pause at the end of sentences and especially at the end of a particular argument. This may seem very simple, but it is also very important. • Try to engage your audience, eye contact and gestures show the judge that you are confident in your submission, emphasizing words will indicate to the judge which points are integral to your argument. • It is important to not get hung up on reading from a script. Judges will interject with questions which may refer to any part of your argument. • Knowing your arguments inside and out and being prepared to be flexible will help you deal with on the spot questioning • Answering Questions From The Judge • Questions from the bench are intimidating but they don’t have to be dreaded! Questions are a great opportunity to score points when answered clearly and knowledgably. • Try to answer the question directly, even if it takes you off the topic you are currently on. For most judges it will be unacceptable to say that you will address that point later in your submission. If the judge has asked a question, you have engaged the interest of the court! Try to keep it; be flexible and have the confidence in your argument! • You should factor in questions from the bench in your 10 minute time allocation. Keep your most important points in the forefront of your mind and answers succinct. If questions take up a larger portion of your time than expected it is permissible to ask the judge for a time extension of 5 minutes to complete your submission. • If you find yourself stuck for an answer it is permissible to ask the bench for a moment to refer to your notes or confer with your co-counsel. • Marks are given for both preparation and oral presentation so make sure you concentrate on both! Court etiquette is incredibly important in mooting and if not adhered to may result in putting the judge offside, looking underprepared and it ultimately reflecting in your score. • 5. SCORING POINTS • A strong opening sentence and convincing concluding statement are invaluable for a high-scoring teams. Additionally it is helpful for the judge if, when moving onto a new point, you can refer them to the relevant point in your written submission. • E.g. “Your Honour, we would like to now move on to point two of our submission…” • Teams should also take care to clearly state the case name when citing, ensuring that judges are taken through your argument as easily as possible.

13. 6. COURT ETIQUETTE Courts are always conducted in an atmosphere of formality. Not adhering to court etiquette can be seen as disrespectful to the bench and may cost you points! Judges Entrance It is customary for everybody in the court to stand when the judge enters the room. The judge will bow to the court, at which point everybody in the room (including passive viewers) should return the bow. The room may take a seat once the judge has taken theirs. This will apply when the judge exits a room as well, standing while the judge is standing is correct courtroom etiquette. Introduction Of Speakers The Senior Counsel for the Appellant will be the first to speak and should only commence speaking when indicated to do so by the judge. “Your Honour, my name is ____________, and I appear as Senior Counsel for the Appellantwith my Junior ____________. The Senior Counsel for the Respondentwill then address the court with their respective statement of introduction. Role of Senior and Junior Counsel Senior Counsel will be the first of both teams to speak. They should outline briefly the points to be covered by both senior and junior counsel., this can be done by simply outlining the points made in their written submission. After Senior Counsel has spoken, Junior Counsel will complete the team’s submissions and summarize their overall case. Court Formalities Some of the phrases that are often used in court include: “My learned friend _____” (When referring to the opposition) “My learned leader” (When Junior Counsel refers to their Senior Counsel) “If your Honour pleases” (OK/Thank you/Accepting a decision or rebuke from the bench) “The learned Justice______” (When referring to a justice) “With respect your Honour” (You are mistaken… USE WITH CAUTION!) “With great respect your Honour” (You are shamefully mistaken… EXTREME CAUTION!) “With the very greatest of respect your Honour” (You’ve lost the plot… and probably the moot)

14. Citations Written citations should be given according to the AGLC 3rd Edition. Spoken citations should be done as follows: Round brackets: (1987) 162 CLR 431 is read: “Decided in 1987 and reported in Volume 162 of the Commonwealth Law Reports at page 431”. Square brackets: [1950] 2 All ER 1099 “Reported in 1950 Volume 2 of the All England Reports at page 1099” • Always use the names of the parties in the case cited in full. “v” is read as “and” in all civil cases. In criminal cases ‘R’ is read as “The Queen” • FURTHER COMPETITIONS OPPORTUNITIES • In future years the LSS will be endeavoring to provide you with a diversity of competitions. There are national law competitions in which winners of internal moots may be able to compete. As the ACU Law program is in its infancy, we will continue to add new competitions into our calendar over the coming years to ensure that all ACU Law students have the opportunity to compete in their area of interest and potentially go on to compete in state-wide and national competitions. • Other competitions that will be introduced include: • Witness Examination • Client Interview • International Humanitarian Law Moot • Negotiation • Paper Presentation • As well as mooting competitions that cater to every skill level (First Year Moot, Junior Moot and Senior Moot) The St Patrick’s Law Student Society wishes the best of luck to all competitors! While it may seem a little overwhelming, don’t forget to enjoy the experience. - Your LSS

15. EXAMPLE WRITTEN SUBMISSION Please use this as a basis for all written submissions IN THE COURT OF APPEAL SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA • Memorandum of Argument • In the matter between • [Name] (Appellant) • And – • [Name] (Respondent) • Senior Council: [Name] • Speaking Time: 10 minutes • Junior Council: [Name] • Speaking Time: 10 minutes • The Appellants submit that: • [major argument one] • [major argument two] • [major argument three] • Senior Council • [Major argument one] • 1.1. [Major argument additional point] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • 2. [Major argument two] • 2.1. [Major argument additional point] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • 2.2 [additional point] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234

16. Junior Council • 3. [Major argument three] • 3.1 [additional point] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • 3.2 [additional point] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • 3.2.1 [additional point to 3.2] • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 • Case v Case [2013] 1 CLR 234 We would like to extend a special thanks to the Monash Law Student Society in helping us to compile this mooting guide.