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Moot Court

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Competitions

Sherman Minton Moot Court

The Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition is a student-run program in written and oral appellate advocacy. The majority of the second-year class participates in this annual competition, which is also open to third-year students who have not previously competed.

The Competition

Participating students have the opportunity to:

  • Gain valuable litigation skills
  • Have a fuller appreciation of the nature of argument, legal representation, and jurisprudence
  • Research and write an appellate brief
  • Engage in at least three rounds of oral arguments

Indiana Law alumni and other legal practitioners and judges from around the country donate their time and insights by serving as competition judges.

From the nearly 150 students who enter the fall rounds, thirty-two competitors are chosen to advance to the spring rounds based on their combined written and oral advocacy scores. Briefs are scored by students on the Sherman Minton Moot Court Board and oral arguments are scored solely by visiting judges.

*Sponsored by Bose McKinney & Evans LLP

Judges

Each judge serves as a member of a panel for student oral arguments set in the United States Supreme Court.

This spring, oral arguments will begin on February 25. Octofinal rounds will be held on Wednesday, February 25, through Saturday, February 28. Weeknight arguments begin at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday arguments begin at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Judges will evaluate each competitor's performance and have an opportunity for informal discussion and critique with students after each round. Each student argues for 15 minutes; a complete session, including judges' comments, takes approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes. Judges are asked to arrive at least 30 minutes before each session.

Your service as a judge will be of tremendous benefit to our students. Judges will receive a bench brief before oral arguments that concisely outlines the current applicable law and suggests questions for each side. Moot Court Board members can answer any questions that you might have about the topic or the scope of the issues in advance of arguments. View the FAQ for Judges for additional information.

If you have any questions about your service as a judge, or the Competition in general, please do not hesitate to contact our Executive Judge Coordinators at judges@indiana.edu, or faculty advisor Prof. Seth Lahn at slahn@indiana.edu or 812-855-0905.

Spring Problem

Read the spring, 2009 Problem and instructions and rules. The Fall Problem, incorporated by reference into the Spring Problem, remains part of the record for the Spring rounds.

Congratulations to our Octofinalists and Honors Winners

Octofinalists and honors winners of the fall rounds of the 2008-2009 Sherman Minton Moot Court competition were announced Friday, Nov. 21. We thank all our fall competitors for their inspiring participation.