Here's how mooting can make you a better lawyer

What is mooting? 

Mooting is a unique blend of debating, public speaking and advocacy training for law students that takes place in a moot court. Both mooting and moot courts are designed to simulate real-world practice, allowing students to engage in realistic legal proceedings in a physical space designed to look like a real courtroom.

At UTS, the on-campus moot courts are among the University’s flagship legal facilities, designed to replicate the NSW Supreme and District courts. Within them, students work as individuals or teams to develop and deliver courtroom arguments and receive immediate feedback.

“The way the courts are designed enables students to have a real advocacy experience. They’re small enough not to be intimidating, but realistic enough that they give them a taste of what it’s like to work in a courtroom setting,” says former Director of Professional Programs for UTS Law, Associate Professor Maxine Evers.

What is a mooting competition? 

Mooting might be a highly practical learning tool, but it’s also an opportunity for law students to travel and meet new people. In mooting competitions, also known as ‘moots’, they compete in mock trials, working in teams to argue theoretical legal scenarios in front of moot court judges.

These moots take place all over the world. At UTS, the Faculty of Law and the Law Students’ Society offer mooting competitions at junior (for first-time mooters) and open (for more experienced competitors) levels, as well as intervarsity competitions against other Australian and international universities.

Big-name moots include the Oxford Intellectual Property Moot in the UK and the Phillip C Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition in the US, which draws students from more than 700 schools in more than 100 countries. 

The UTS Faculty of Law is highly regarded on the both the national and international mooting circuit: UTS teams won the 2024 Gibbs Constitutional Law Moot; the 2022 Oxford Intellectual Property Moot; and the Australian national round of the 2021 Jessup Moot. 

2026 Jessup Moot 

The UTS Faculty of Law's 2026 Jessup Moot team competed against over 800 teams from across the globe in the International Rounds of the Jessup competition in Washington D.C. The UTS team ranked 28th overall, competing against 170 universities from 89 countries - the highest ranking ever achieved by a UTS team! 

Why mooting matters

International bragging rights are one thing, but getting involved with mooting can do more than give students’ egos a boost. 

“Mooting can give you the ability to argue on your feet, to think analytically about the law, to pre-empt your opponent's arguments, to find the most persuasive legal argument and take it forward, but also to potentially innovate in a way that a judge might find interesting,” says Professor Ramona Vijeyarasa, former Juris Doctor Program Head at UTS.