What is a moot court?

In constitutional law, a moot court is an important part of the curriculum undertaken twice in a semester, during the class time, and students serve as both presenter and judges. A moot court is a competition, conducted at both undergraduate level and in law school, in which teams of students prepare and argue legal cases.

Such cases may be real or hypothetical, and the students are given a set period to prepare. Judges are selected for the cases and the general rules are framed, some of which are: 1. Petitioners, the side bringing the case, go first; 2. Presenters have a set time period for their argument. 3. Judges may ask questions at any time. They may ask anything about the case, and are not restricted to the point or argument the presenter is making at the time. 4. After the petitioners, respondents have the same time period to present their argument. 5. At the close of the arguments, the judges meet to deliberate and they make three decisions: a. Judgment of the case on merits. b. Best overall team and c. Best individual presenter.