On Monday 11th March 2019, St. Mary’s law programmes took part in a mooting on a complex point of contract law using a problem drafted by Ishan Kolhatkar of BPP. Competing students presented legal arguments to a panel of judges in the mock Supreme Court.
Mooting events are a fantastic opportunity for students to draw on the skills they have gained from their studies, and practise their advocacy in a formal yet supportive setting. Mooting is very well regarded by the legal profession and looks great on student CV’s .
Panel of judges
Evelyn Ofori-Koree, Principal Solicitor at Descartes Solicitors in West London, joined the panel of judges for the event. Evelyn is a very experienced court advocate with Higher Rights of Audience in the UK courts and tribunals. In addition to her work in practice, Evelyn sits on the Immigration Law Committee and has been a committee member of the Ethnic Minority Lawyers Division of the Law Society since 2016. Students (including competitors and observers) were given a short talk by Evelyn at the start of the event and practical feedback at the end of their submissions.
Hosts of the event
The event was convened by Lloyd Gash, Senior Lecturer in Law and Gemma Hobcraft, Barrister and Lecturer in Law who sat with Evelyn on the bench, with Lloyd acting as Chair. The participating students put a great deal of work into their preparation, and the standard of advocacy was very good. Lloyd Gash stated, “An enjoyable evening was had by all. Congratulations to the winning teams. On behalf of the staff and students on the St. Mary’s Law Programmes, our sincere thanks goes to Evelyn for sharing her experiences with us, for being such an excellent judge, and for her warmth and kindness throughout the event.”
Many congratulations to Annai State and Lucy Hogan for winning the competition. Congratulations are extended to all those who took part. The next Moot will be held in the autumn of 2019 and will be based on a criminal law problem. All students are warmly encouraged to take part.