The Carleton University Legal Studies Society (CULSS) moot team took home six awards at the Osgoode Cup March 3-4 in Toronto.
Out of 10 awards for distinguished oralists, five went to Carleton students Michael De Luca, Allison Medjuck, Nicholas Valsamis, Colin Stephens and Kaisha Thompson.
“We have a large team and a large support base,” De Luca said.
This was the moot team’s second time representing Carleton at the annual competition at York University, according to team captain Devin Harm. Sixteen of the 88 competitors represented Carleton.
Mooting is a form of public speaking commonly found in law school. There are two sides in a moot— the appellant and respondent— and three judges, according to the competition’s website.
“It’s about becoming a better speaker and becoming more familiar with public speaking,” Harm said.
Teams of two students present an argument they have created in advance to a panel of judges and respond to questions related to their argument, according to the Osgoode Cup website.
The team said there was about 20 hours of preparation a week, involving case readings, submission writing, knowing the arguments, and meeting with a faculty panel.
“We would have lawyers and professors come in and we would present to them and they would question us on our legal capacity as they would at a competition,” Harm said.
De Luca said this is the most supportive year Carleton’s moot team has had with the community and faculty. The team received financial support from the law department, the dean of public affairs and the student affairs office, plus a sponsorship from Langevin Morris Smith LLP, De Luca said.
Medjuck said she learned a lot about case law and how current laws work in Canada.
“It was more than I could have hoped for,” she said. “It was a really positive experience.”
