About Us
What do we do?
The University of Calgary Moot Court Society provides undergraduate students with an opportunity to meet other students with the same interests, and to explore the world of law, advocacy and mooting. Through workshops, our members learn and finetune their oral advocacy, case analysis and argumentative skills, and our host of tournaments challenge them to use such skills. In addition, members have access to panels and information sessions about topics such as the LSAT, law school and careers in law.
What is Mooting?
Moot court is centered around participants presenting an appeal or motions case before a panel of judges.
A team of two will present as either the appellant or the respondent. The appellant is appealing the lower court’s decision and the respondent is defending the lower court’s decision. Depending upon the format of the tournament, each individual will have 7-10 minutes to make your case. Often times, a rebuttal is not permitted. There are no witnesses or juries as, in appellate court, the legal issues are often the source of the dispute, not the facts. Depending on the tournament, the case may be real or fictional.
The simulated atmosphere offered by moot court is a rare opportunity for you to dive right into the courtroom and gain empirical experience in the law. You will be able to practice your public speaking and presentation skills. This is highly beneficial as mooting is a common practice in law school that helps prepare students for the real world.
Through mooting, you can decide for yourself whether or not law is the path for you. Come to our events and see it for yourself.
Osgoode Cup
Each year, we send students on a fully paid scholarship to Toronto for the Osgoode Cup. This national tournament is an opportunity for students to compete with some of the best undergraduate mooters from across the country. Members of UCMCS have the chance, through tournaments throughout the year, to qualify for this amazing scholarship.