Rutgers School of Law–Camden offers numerous opportunities to participate in moot court competitions. These intra- and
interscholastic competitions are open to participation by second- and
third-year law students. Generally, these competitions contain both a
brief writing component as well as an oral argument competition.
Participation requirements for each competition vary, as do the
application procedures.
Students are strongly encouraged to complete one or more courses
directed to the kind of skills the desired competition features prior to
entering such competition (e.g., trial advocacy, client counseling,
etc.). Students are also strongly encouraged to take the underlying
substantive course upon which the competition is based (e.g.,
International Law course for Jessup International Law Moot Court
Competition). For competitive applications, preference will be given to
students who have already competed in the Hunter Moot Court Competition.
This page is divided into two sections: (1) those competitions for
which Rutgers offers credit and/or funding; (2) those extracurricular
competitions for which Rutgers does not currently offer credit but may
offer some funding. The Rutgers for-credit competitions typically have faculty sponsorship coordination and/or approval. The extracurricular competitions
are divided below by category, and offer a link to the hosting entity's
informational page. If you are aware of a competition that is not
listed below, please contact Professor Jason Cohen (jayco@camden.rutgers.edu) to add the competition.
Appellate Advocacy: Hunter Moot Court
Hunter Moot Court is an advanced and yearlong course for 5 credits
in which students prepare an appellate brief in two-person teams, while
studying advanced materials about persuasion and public speaking.
Students are selected to participate in the Hunter Moot Court during a
tryout competition the prior academic year, just after the conclusion
of spring semester final exams. The tryouts are based on an oral
argument and on a grade received for a brief (LAWR II, specified upper-level writing, or lawyering courses with brief-writing components).
Students in the yearlong program work on written advocacy in the fall
semester and oral advocacy in the spring. The program culminates with
the competition in the spring semester. All inquiries regarding the
Hunter Moot Competition and class should be directed to Professor Ruth
Anne Robbins, ruthanne@camden.rutgers.edu. Rutgers students may also visit the Hunter Moot Court general web board, containing information about this year's competition and upcoming tryouts.
Appellate Advocacy: International Moot Court (Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition)
International Law Moot Court is a two-semester course where students
prepare for an appellate-style argument regarding a matter of
international law. During the first semester, students write a memorial
(international law brief) and prepare an oral argument for an intramural
competition. The top students are selected by the International Law
Moot Court adviser to participate in the interscholastic competition,
which takes place in Washington, D.C., in early March.
Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition
This competition involves
various topical civil rights issues. The team is selected by a faculty
adviser to participate in the National Black Law Students Association
Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition.
Trial Advocacy Competition
The National Student Trial Advocacy Competition is a component of this
course, which seeks to develop a greater understanding of case
preparation, examination skills, theory development, trial strategy, and
techniques of persuasion.
Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot and Vis East
A team of students, selected by application from the fall International
Commercial Arbitration Course, enroll in the spring course
International Commercial Arbitration Advocacy. The students participate
in the Willem C. Vis Moot in Vienna, Austria, or its sister moot in Hong
Kong, the Vis East. The goal of this competition is to foster the study
of international commercial law and arbitration for resolution of
international business disputes.
(no credit)
In addition, many regional and national moot court competitions are available,
for which Rutgers may provide some funding. Rutgers School of Law–Camden's
participation in these competitions is based largely upon student
interest. The law school endeavors to pick the best qualified and most
appropriate applicant(s) for slots on a team.
