“The Mooters” is a weekly series where Bar & Bench interviews the Moot Court Committees of different law schools in the country. .In this piece, the team from National Academy of Legal Studies and Research, Hyderabad talks about the selection process followed, challenges faced while organising a moot and the benefits of mooting for a law student..Bar & Bench: How are members inducted into the Moot Court Committee and what are their main responsibilities? .NALSAR: The Moot Court Committee at NALSAR, Hyderabad is a student-run body comprising 5 members representing each of the 5 batches of the B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) course. Each member in the MCC is elected through voting at the batch level on a day prescribed by the University authorities. The MCC is headed by the Convenor who elected is from among the 5 representative members by way of closed ballot voting by the said 5 representatives..Further, as far as responsibilities are concerned, the MCC is entrusted with the larger responsibility of facilitating mooting in the University. On a more specific note, the MCC is responsible for organizing various intra and inter-university moot court competitions which include following:.a. The Annual NALSAR – Justice Bodh Raj Sawhny Memorial Moot Court Competition..b. The Annual NALSAR Introductory & Selection Moots (Both of these are Intra-University competitions.).c. Open Challenge & Quality Control Rounds for the teams representing the University at various national and international moot court competitions..d. Faculty Rounds for the team representing the University in various National Level Moot Court Competitions. The Faculty Rounds are conducted for teams which are part of the NALSAR Selection Team..e. Additionally, the Moot Court Committee, 2014-15 is in the process of revising the Rules of the Moot Court Committee which regulate the internal affairs of mooting in NALSAR..B&B: What is the process of organizing an inter-college moot court competition? How do you find sponsors?.NALSAR: In the month of September, 2014, the MCC had organised the 8th edition of the Annual NALSAR – Justice Bodh Raj Sawhny Memorial Moot Court Competition. The usual process for organisation of the competition commences approximately two to three months before the National Rounds. The initial procedure involves marking the calendar for the dates and drafting of the Moot Proposition for the competition. The dates of the moot court competition are meticulously decided factoring in the University schedule with regard to examinations and project submissions. We also consider the dates of other national Moot Court Competitions organised by institutions across the country. Once the Moot Proposition is finalised, we release the Proposition and Schedule along with the official invitation to various institutions across the country..The next step involves the formation of an Organising Committee which assists the MCC in organising the Competition and inviting the judges for various rounds. Simultaneously, we also make hospitality arrangements for the teams and judges for the dates of the National Rounds in Hyderabad. Since the recent edition of the NALSAR- B.R. Sawhny Moot had the provision for Memorial Elimination Rounds prior to the National Rounds, after the memorial submission, the results of the Memorial Elimination Rounds are released to determine the teams which are going to participate in the National Rounds..Eventually, the National Rounds of the moot are conducted on the scheduled dates and comprise the following rounds:.a. Preliminary Rounds.b. Quarter Final Rounds.c. Semi Final Rounds.d. Finals.In the 8th edition of the NALSAR- Justice B.R. Sawhny Moot, we introduced the power seeding system for match ups of the teams for various rounds. .B&B: How do you select judges for various rounds?.NALSAR: As far as selection of judges for the inter – college moot is concerned, we are extremely particular about who we choose for various rounds as this ensures the quality of arguments put forth by the teams in every round. We choose judges on the basis of their expertise and experience in the area of the moot proposition. For the Preliminary Rounds and Quarter Final Rounds, the bench is usually constituted of two judges and for Semi Finals and Finals the bench is constituted of three judges..To ensure there is parity in marking of different judges, we also brief the judges on marking range and moot proposition before they sit for rounds..B&B: In your opinion, how does mooting benefit a law student?.NALSAR: In our opinion and experience, Moot Court Competitions go a long way in helping a law student not just in law school but also in his/her professional career after law school. The most important skill which mooting inculcates is that of being a team player. The preparatory period for moot court competitions can range anywhere from one month to 6 months, which translates into extensive and multi-faceted research on the legal issues in the moot proposition. On conclusion of the moot, every participant ends up with a great treasure of knowledge in the subject. Moreover, such a long preparatory period ensures that team members stay focused, persistent and engaged with the problem throughout. Another important aspect of mooting is research and drafting of memorials, which requires one to be extremely precise and coherent..The Moot Court Committee of NALSAR, Hyderabad comprises Nilav Banerjee (I year), Rohan Dewan (II year), Arpita Chanana (III year), Dipankar Das (IV Year) and Shailesh Singh (V Year)..(If you would like your college moot court team to be featured, send us a mail at shreya@barandbench.com)
“The Mooters” is a weekly series where Bar & Bench interviews the Moot Court Committees of different law schools in the country. .In this piece, the team from National Academy of Legal Studies and Research, Hyderabad talks about the selection process followed, challenges faced while organising a moot and the benefits of mooting for a law student..Bar & Bench: How are members inducted into the Moot Court Committee and what are their main responsibilities? .NALSAR: The Moot Court Committee at NALSAR, Hyderabad is a student-run body comprising 5 members representing each of the 5 batches of the B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) course. Each member in the MCC is elected through voting at the batch level on a day prescribed by the University authorities. The MCC is headed by the Convenor who elected is from among the 5 representative members by way of closed ballot voting by the said 5 representatives..Further, as far as responsibilities are concerned, the MCC is entrusted with the larger responsibility of facilitating mooting in the University. On a more specific note, the MCC is responsible for organizing various intra and inter-university moot court competitions which include following:.a. The Annual NALSAR – Justice Bodh Raj Sawhny Memorial Moot Court Competition..b. The Annual NALSAR Introductory & Selection Moots (Both of these are Intra-University competitions.).c. Open Challenge & Quality Control Rounds for the teams representing the University at various national and international moot court competitions..d. Faculty Rounds for the team representing the University in various National Level Moot Court Competitions. The Faculty Rounds are conducted for teams which are part of the NALSAR Selection Team..e. Additionally, the Moot Court Committee, 2014-15 is in the process of revising the Rules of the Moot Court Committee which regulate the internal affairs of mooting in NALSAR..B&B: What is the process of organizing an inter-college moot court competition? How do you find sponsors?.NALSAR: In the month of September, 2014, the MCC had organised the 8th edition of the Annual NALSAR – Justice Bodh Raj Sawhny Memorial Moot Court Competition. The usual process for organisation of the competition commences approximately two to three months before the National Rounds. The initial procedure involves marking the calendar for the dates and drafting of the Moot Proposition for the competition. The dates of the moot court competition are meticulously decided factoring in the University schedule with regard to examinations and project submissions. We also consider the dates of other national Moot Court Competitions organised by institutions across the country. Once the Moot Proposition is finalised, we release the Proposition and Schedule along with the official invitation to various institutions across the country..The next step involves the formation of an Organising Committee which assists the MCC in organising the Competition and inviting the judges for various rounds. Simultaneously, we also make hospitality arrangements for the teams and judges for the dates of the National Rounds in Hyderabad. Since the recent edition of the NALSAR- B.R. Sawhny Moot had the provision for Memorial Elimination Rounds prior to the National Rounds, after the memorial submission, the results of the Memorial Elimination Rounds are released to determine the teams which are going to participate in the National Rounds..Eventually, the National Rounds of the moot are conducted on the scheduled dates and comprise the following rounds:.a. Preliminary Rounds.b. Quarter Final Rounds.c. Semi Final Rounds.d. Finals.In the 8th edition of the NALSAR- Justice B.R. Sawhny Moot, we introduced the power seeding system for match ups of the teams for various rounds. .B&B: How do you select judges for various rounds?.NALSAR: As far as selection of judges for the inter – college moot is concerned, we are extremely particular about who we choose for various rounds as this ensures the quality of arguments put forth by the teams in every round. We choose judges on the basis of their expertise and experience in the area of the moot proposition. For the Preliminary Rounds and Quarter Final Rounds, the bench is usually constituted of two judges and for Semi Finals and Finals the bench is constituted of three judges..To ensure there is parity in marking of different judges, we also brief the judges on marking range and moot proposition before they sit for rounds..B&B: In your opinion, how does mooting benefit a law student?.NALSAR: In our opinion and experience, Moot Court Competitions go a long way in helping a law student not just in law school but also in his/her professional career after law school. The most important skill which mooting inculcates is that of being a team player. The preparatory period for moot court competitions can range anywhere from one month to 6 months, which translates into extensive and multi-faceted research on the legal issues in the moot proposition. On conclusion of the moot, every participant ends up with a great treasure of knowledge in the subject. Moreover, such a long preparatory period ensures that team members stay focused, persistent and engaged with the problem throughout. Another important aspect of mooting is research and drafting of memorials, which requires one to be extremely precise and coherent..The Moot Court Committee of NALSAR, Hyderabad comprises Nilav Banerjee (I year), Rohan Dewan (II year), Arpita Chanana (III year), Dipankar Das (IV Year) and Shailesh Singh (V Year)..(If you would like your college moot court team to be featured, send us a mail at shreya@barandbench.com)
