Students from 16 Australian schools have triumphed as the regional winners of the annual Bond University Faculty of Law High School Mooting Competition.
These teams will now go on to compete against each other in the final round of the competition held at Bond University’s campus on Saturday 27 July, 2013.
Attracting some of the nation’s finest up-and-coming legal minds, the year 10, 11 and 12 students will battle it out in the Moot Court for the prestigious winning title and 40% scholarships to study law at Bond University.
Out of the 309 students who participated at the High School Mooting Competition regional rounds, 49 of these have also gone on to receive Advocacy Awards. These outstanding students will attend the grand final event, and in addition, participate in Bond University’s first advocacy workshop.
Now in its 24th year the competition brings students together from across Australia including Penrhos College (Perth), Whitsunday Anglican School (Northern Queensland), Haileybury Girls (Melbourne) and Immanuel Lutheran College (Brisbane).
Director of Mooting and Assistant Professor Joel Butler said the competition introduces students to the courtroom environment, allowing them the opportunity to confront the type of cases they might encounter in the future as practising lawyers.
“The competition is an opportunity for students to build their confidence and to put their thoughts into words, which is the type of exposure this competition offers that a classroom setting may not,” explained Assistant Professor Butler.
“For prospective law students, the Bond University High School Mooting Competition offers the chance to test their potential skills as court advocates and to practice persuasive speaking, while arguing a point on their feet.”
“The best advocates in the finals are awarded scholarships to study law at Bond University. In the past, many of those who have taken up these scholarships have gone on to win international mooting competitions for Bond, and have secured prestigious graduate careers including Associates to High Court Justices in Canberra,” he said.
The High School Mooting finalists will arrive for their welcome reception on Friday, 26 July ready for the grand final on Saturday, 27 July. This will be followed by the award ceremony and celebration dinner for the students, teachers and parents to celebrate their achievements.
Schools that will compete in the 2013 finals are:
• Seymour College (Adelaide)
• Immanuel Lutheran College (Brisbane)
• Ipswich Grammar College (Brisbane)
• Mountain Creek State High School (Brisbane)
• St Joseph’s College (Brisbane)
• Daramalian College (Canberra)
• St Michael’s College (Gold Coast)
• Caulfield Grammar School (Melbourne)
• Haileybury Girls (Melbourne)
• Geelong College (Melbourne)
• Whitsunday Anglican School (Northern Queensland)
• John Paul College (Northern Rivers)
• Penrhos College (Perth)
• Sydney Grammar School (Sydney)
• Trinity Grammar School (Sydney)
• Toowoomba State High School (Toowoomba)