General

1.     These Competition Rules (the “Rules”) will apply for the National Speed Mooting Competition (the “Moot”).

2.     Those entering the competition will be referred to below as a Participant(s).

Eligibility

3.     The Moot is open to undergraduate law and GDL students from any university or college within the UK. Post-graduate students (e.g. LPC, BPTC or Masters students) may not enter.

4.     Participants are to sign up through speedmooting.com.

5.     The cost of entry for the event is £30.00 (thirty pounds). The cost of entry is non-refundable once a participant has signed up to enter the competition.

Particulars of the Event

6.     The competition will take place on SATURDAY 22^nd February 2020 at BPP Manchester. Directions will be provided in due course.

7.     The event will run from 9:00am until approximately 6pm.

Moot Structure

8.     The competition will have up to 128 participants, depending on interest.

9.     The Moot will consist of a total of seven single elimination rounds.

10.  Save for, and without prejudice to, paragraph 13 below, the competition will follow the following format depending on the number of entrants:

i.                 Exactly 128:

There will be 7 rounds exactly.

ii.               65-127 participants:

An appropriate number of participants will be randomly given a bye into the second round in order to ensure that 64 participants progress. There will then be 6 further rounds.

iii.             33-64 participants:

An appropriate number of participants will be randomly given a bye into the second round in order to ensure that 32 participants progress. There will then be 5 further rounds.

iv.             32 participants:

There will be 5 rounds exactly.

11.  The role and opponent of each participant will initially be determined by a random draw. This draw will also pre-determine the course of the winning participant.

12.  Where participants have taken part in previous rounds they shall automatically be assigned to the role they have acted in least. In the event that this is the same for both parties to the moot, the question shall be resolved by coin toss.

13.  The Moot Organisers reserve the right to alter the format of the competition to a double elimination competition should the number of participants attending allow for it.

Times

14.  The times allotted to each participant shall be:

i.                 Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4 and Quarter Finals:

7 minutes per participant.

ii.               Semi Final and Final :

10 minutes per participant.

15.  All time limits include time taken for judicial interventions and questions.

16.  There is no right to reply.

17.  The clerk will provide minute reminders.

18.  These times may be varied as the organisers see fit on the day. Any changes will be communicated to all participants in advance of the affected round.

19.  Any participant who exceeds their allotted time will only be permitted to continue with the permission of the judge, which shall be granted solely at his or her discretion. Mooters will not be automatically penalised for exceeding time limits, but the judge may penalise bad time management at his/her discretion.

Problem, Skeletons and Bundle

20.  Each participant shall be provided with a PDF copy of the bundle which is to include the problem, skeleton arguments for both sides and the relevant authorities.

21.  These bundles will be sent to the email provided at sign up by no later than 6pm on Friday 21^st February 2020.

22.  The Moot Organisers will provide two bundles for each room; one for the judge and one for the speaking mooter.

23.  Participants are therefore welcome to print copies for their own reference, notes and annotation but no amended or highlighted bundles will be allowed to be submitted to the judge.

24.  Participants may use as much or as little as the skeleton argument as they see fit. Mooters are not obliged to make every point or use every authority in the skeleton argument.

25.  Mooters should however refrain from making points outside the provided skeleton and the citation of additional material is not allowed.

Moot Problem

26.  Any objections or issues should be raised no later than 9pm on Friday 21^st February 2020 to ensure all participants receive any further information supplied in good time.

27.  The Moot Organisers shall have the power to resolve ambiguities or objections in their absolute discretion.

28.  Any variations or clarifications to the Moot problem will be communicated to all competitors as soon as reasonably practicable by email.

Judges

29.  Judges shall be appointed by the Moot Organisers.

30.  No objections to the appointment or allocation of judges will be entertained. The number of judges in any given round remains at the discretion of the Moot Organisers.

31.  Judges shall be selected from university lecturers, practising barristers, pupil barristers, practising solicitors, persons undertaking training contracts to be a solicitor and persons who have successfully completed or are currently undertaking the BPTC or LPC.

32.  Judges and participants are under an obligation to declare any conflict of interest that arise when it is clear who their judge will be in any given round so the moot can be reassigned to another judge.

33.  At the end of each moot, the judges will determine the winning contestant.

34.  There shall be no appeal against the decision of any judge, and they are not obliged to give reasons for their decisions but will ordinarily do so.

35.  In reaching a decision, the judge shall take into account in particular the following matters:

i. The court room etiquette and manner of each mooter and each contestant.

ii. The presentation and clarity of each mooter’s speech, including whether each point (or aspects of it) was too long or too short bearing in mind the confines of the competition.

iii. The mooter’s ability to develop their argument.

iv. The use made by each mooter of each authority or other literature cited.

v. The ability of each mooter to deal with the judge’s interventions.

Complaints

36.  Any complaints arising in the competition shall be brought to the attention of the Moot Organisers at the earliest possible opportunity who shall have the power to resolve any dispute as they see fit. No appeal of that decision will be entertained.