Mooting is simultaneously one of the most nerve-racking experiences that you’ll probably go through in law school and can also be one of the most exhilarating experiences when you successfully persuade a panel of judges to view things from your perspective and win a seemingly un-winnable case. Much is required before the actual moot in terms of research and preparation, but once the moot begins a lot rests upon how well a mooter can sway the court to his/her way of thinking. Whilst confidence and preparation play a large part in this, it is very important to use the correct terminology when making submissions, addressing the bench and answering questions from the bench. Below are some examples of phrases to use in persuading the court that you’re a fantastic mooter and deserve to win your case!

Opening

Mooting is as much about your ability to conduct proper legal research and present a well-structured written argument in the form of a submission, as it is about your ability to orally present your case and persuasively argue for its merits. Thus a lot comes down to how well you present yourself and your argument. This is especially important during the opening few minutes when first impressions are being made and you have the ability to get the bench onside. A mooter should always start with a strong opening line, an example being: “Your Honour, the trial judge was correct/erred in finding that…..”. Then you should say that they were correct/erred because of the following reasons (X, Y and Z – a summary of the points you are going to make). Some mooters like to present the bench with a story or analogy to prove these points and continually refer the bench back to this story/analogy when answering questions from the bench or making submissions. Whatever you choose to do, the opening few minutes of the moot is when you have the most control over what is happening and have the best opportunity to make a lasting impression. So the best advice to any mooter is to start strongly and boldly with confidence in whatever you have to say.

Submit, Submit, Submit

Rather than saying something like, “Your Honour, I think/believe that…”, a mooter should always try to instead use the word ‘submit’. You are presenting your legal argument on behalf of your client. The bench does not care for your personal thoughts or beliefs but rather wants to hear what you submit to be your legal argument as to why you should win the case. Submit is a very strong and precise word and gives much more weight to your argument than someone who tells the court what they ‘think’. Phrases to use are: “I submit / we submit / it is submitted that….”

I’m Wrong

As much as we hate to admit it, at times we all get confused and say the wrong things. Mooting before a bench is a formal process where the language you use is very important. When you make a mistake in facts or legal argument and are corrected by the bench, it is important to remain formal in your reaction to this correction. A more appropriate way to say, “yes, I’m wrong”, is “I stand corrected, Your Honour”.

The Bench is Wrong

When mooting it is easy to fall into the trap of becoming aggressive and arrogant in your arguments, and sometimes this arrogance is then shown through your reactions to the bench’s questions. This is very poor form and experience will teach you that a good mooter can remain calm and in control of his/her argument without being condescending or arrogant. Although the bench must at all times be treated with the utmost respect, the bench is human and at times can be mistaken. As a mooter you must never be arrogant and tell the bench that they are wrong. Instead, you must be clever enough to disguise your disagreement with the bench by saying things like:

“With respect, Your Honour….” (I disagree)

“With all due respect, Your Honour…” (I strongly disagree)

“With the utmost respect, Your Honour…” ( I really strongly disagree, but still want to be polite)

Moving Through Your Submissions

It is important to have a plan when mooting and to know where you are going next with your submission. A good submission should be the base for your oral argument and from it you should be able to easily identify which point you are going to move to next. It is the mooter’s duty to guide the bench through your submissions, not the other way around. Therefore, as a mooter you are in control of what points you raise, what order to raise these points and how much time should be spent of each point before moving on to the next one.

Don’t wait for the bench to tell you to proceed to the next point in your submissions, instead say to the bench: “Unless your Honour has any further questions, I will move on to the next point of my submission.”

Running Out of Time

Even the very best mooters can be led astray by questions from the bench and find that they don’t have enough time to finish all the submissions they had planned to cover. However, rather than to fully get through 2 ½ of your 4 submissions, it is better to note to the bench that you are running out of time and ask for permission to quickly summarise your remaining submissions. Your oral argument is much more persuasive if finished in summary, rather than left incomplete. Also, if the bench is feeling rather generous they may choose to grant you more time to properly conclude your arguments or grant you an extension to deal more fully with another point in your submission over which they are troubled. However, you shouldn’t rely on a time extension because the rules of moot competitions differ and where some allow this, others don’t.

What is most important however is that you take control of your submissions, note to the bench that you’re running out of time, and ask for permission to summarise. You may wish to say something like: “I see my time is about to expire, if I may seek the court’s indulgence to summarise/complete my submission?”

Final Comment

Just like any essay you write, your oral argument needs a conclusion both to show the bench that you have finished and to allow them the opportunity to ask for further clarification on any points in your submission that they are still pondering. First, you should summarise your main points of submission, then state that therefore the court should find in your favour by dis/allowing the appeal and varying/upholding the findings of the learned trial judge at first instance. After this you should say something along the lines of: “Unless Your Honour has any further questions, that concludes the submissions for the appellant/respondent on the 1 st/2 nd ground of appeal.”