We will be holding the competition in early 2021. The competition will be taking place place virtually on Zoom. Read below for details.
All places in the competition have now been filled. To be notified of any future competitions, click below to join our mailing list.
What is a plea in mitigation
A plea in mitigation is an argument made in court by the barrister or solicitor representing a Defendant that has pleaded guilty to or been found guilty of a criminal offence. The purpose of the plea in mitigation is to outline the mitigating factors in a case and therefore obtain the best possible sentence on behalf of their client. This is a type of advocacy undertaken regularly by criminal barristers and solicitors.
About the competitions
The first round of the Plea in Mitigation Competition Winter Cup 2021 will take place across three dates. Choose the date most convenient to you. You only enter on one Round 1 date. The competition is open to:
– Law undergraduates and graduates;
– GDL students and graduates;
– Masters, BPTC and LPC students and graduates
Participants enter as individuals rather than teams and represent themselves and not their university. There is therefore no limit on the number of students that can enter from any given institution. You can only enter on one date though.
Submissions will be limited to 5 minutes per participant. The bundle will be sent to participants on Saturday 16th January 2021. This means that you will have either 1, 2 or 3 weeks to prepare, depending on which date you compete in Round 1. The bundle will include all of the required materials, meaning no additional research is required. As this is a plea in mitigation competition, no drafting will be required. As there is no research or drafting, participants will be tested on their oral advocacy alone. The competition is judged by practising barristers and solicitors.
How it Works
There are three first round dates. Each will take place on Zoom. The dates are:
Saturday 23rd January 2021 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
Saturday 30th January 2021 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
Saturday 6th February 2021 9:30 am to 2:30 pm
36 individuals will compete in each Round 1 date. 12 participants from each Round 1 date will progress to the final. Everyone that competes has two opportunities to progress from Round 1 to the final.
The final, for those that progress to the final, will take place on Saturday 27th February 2021
Competition format
The target size for each Round 1 date is 36 participants (meaning 108 competitors in total – 3×36). Everyone that signs up will take part in the competition.
For the each 1st Round date, the 36 competitors will be split into 6 groups of 6. Each group will have their own judge(s). One by one, each competitor in a group will perform the plea in mitigation in front of the judge(s). The judge will determine the winner of the group and that individual will go through to the final on 27th February 2021.
On each Round 1 date, the remaining 30 participants that didn’t progress will have a second opportunity to go through. These 30 participants will be split into 6 groups of 5. They will have the opportunity to present their plea in mitigation to a different judge. The judge will determine the winner from each group and that individual will go through to the final on 27th February.
There will therefore be 12 participants from each Round 1 date (36 in total) progressing to the final on 27th February.
At the final on 27th February 2021, the 36 competitors will be split into 6 groups of 6. One by one, they will perform the plea in mitigation in front of their judge. The judge from each group will decide the winner from that group.
Later that day, the six winners of the groups will then present one last time to the full panel of judges. The winner and runner up will then be decided by the panel.
Prize
The winner on 27th February 2021will receive an iPad. The runner up on 27th February 2021 will receive a £75.00 Amazon voucher.
Founder of the National Speed Mooting Competition