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All students are
required to participate in one moot court session during the term,
which counts for 20% of the final grade. A moot court is patterned
after a Supreme Court hearing. No witnesses are called, nor are the
basic facts in a case disputed. Arguments are prepared and presented
on the application of a law, the constitutionality of a law, or the
fairness of previous court procedures. |
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Teams will be two to
a side, and the burden of research/speaking/rebuttal can be divided up
as team members see fit. |
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Arguments do not need
to be confined to the ones made in the case. Any argument thought to
be persuasive from a philosophical, theoretical, conceptual or
practical standpoint can be made. Teams may rely on principles founded
on the United States Constitution. On the other hand, arguments that
make little intellectual sense will not be rewarded with a good grade. |
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Each litigant team
will present its oral argument to the Chief Justice (otherwise known
as the webmaster). Teams should anticipate active questioning from the
Chief Justice during oral presentations. Spokespersons representing
each litigant team are expected to respond immediately to questions
and concerns raised by the judges. Discussions with the judges in this
manner will not extend the team's time unless the court exercises its
discretion to permit an extension of time for the team's scheduled
presentation. |
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Litigant teams' oral
arguments are limited to a specific amount of time. Each side will
have 10 minutes to present its case, followed by three minutes of
rebuttal time, which should be used to counter opponent's arguments,
not to raise new issues. |
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After the
presentations, each side will take questions from the assembled panel
of district judges (the class), sitting en banc. Keep in mind that
informed questions also will factor into your overall moot court grade
for the term. |
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