How the Brunel Mooting Competition shaped my law career

I began my Law degree with no idea of which legal path I wanted to pursue. My participation in the Internal Mooting Competition in my first year of study, to now becoming the internal mooting officer, has moulded my future career. 

Mooting at Brunel
Mooting is the oral presentation of a legal problem against an opposing team and in front of a judge. It's probably the closest a student can get to a courtroom experience while in university. The Brunel Law Society hosts this competition, which has been running for several years and has been a huge success. The mooters dress in wigs and gowns, and present in the Brunel Moot Court, putting them in the shoes of a barrister! 

My first-year journey
I joined the mooting competition in 2020, during the Covid period. The competition took place on Zoom. I was 1 out of 200 candidates. We began by learning about the legal documents (skeletons and bundles) that we needed to prepare before giving our oral presentations. This consisted of combining the knowledge from our lectures with the mooting scenario question. Here's my electronic skeleton argument.

We then mooted in front of the judges and the candidates got eliminated from round to round. I worked so hard to improve on my skills with the feedback I was given. With all this effort, I made it to the finals. There were two finals. In the first final, I was judged by a panel of barristers, who awarded me as the winner of the competition. In the second final, we mooted in the Supreme Court (which was phenomenal). I was also crowned as the winner of the external mooting competition by Lord Sales. At that point, I realised it had been well worth the graft!

My second-year journey
I was elected as the Internal Mooting Officer for 2021/2022. I started the year by promoting mooting everywhere – Freshers’ fairs, Instagram, LinkedIn, you name it! I managed to rake in over hundreds of participants at the start of the year. I made sure that all our sessions were being held on campus this year. I organised introduction sessions, training sessions (by barristers), practice rounds, and then the real competition began.

I have judged these students (alongside the Vice Mooting Officer, Zia) and given them all tailored feedback. It's been a joy to watch all the mooter’s progress because of the feedback I've given them. It’s been lovely being able to implement all the skills that I learnt in my first year, to the next batch of mooting students. I’ve taught them all the tricks up my sleeve! We are now down to the quarter finals (narrowed it down to 12 candidates from over hundreds).

Skills and career paths
Where do I even begin? The skills that I’ve personally gained from this competition are incredible! Even more amazing is the growth I've seen in my current mooting students. The confidence that you gain is out of this world. I've seen mooters enter the competition with little to none, and now they've made it to the quarter-finals thanks to their outrageous confidence.

You will also gain an insight into your future career. Students join the competition, some love it, and some hate it. The one’s that love it, usually aspire to become barristers. The students that aren’t a too keen, often explore a different path. 

Last but not least, you learn how to speak in a courtroom. Learning how to speak to a judge is crucial. You can’t speak to a judge casually. I’m addressed as ‘My Lady’ when I am the judge (which I’m not complaining about)! These aren't always skills you'll gain from pursuing a law degree. These skills can only be developed if you actively participate in such competitions.

Winning the internal and external Mooting Competition last year was the highlight of my first year. Being the Internal Mooting Officer has undoubtedly been the highlight of my second year.

The Semi-finals (2 March) and Final (13 April) of the Mooting Competition 2022 will be streamed Live.