CULS Mooting is dedicated to promoting the passion for mooting and advocacy among both law and non-law students at Cambridge University.
CULS Mooting occupies a central role in Cambridge’s illustrious mooting history. We are host to various mooting competitions such as the De Smith Moot organised by One Essex Court and the Fledglings Moot, as well as the BPP Team Moot amongst others.
Further afield, our mooters have fared well against other universities across the UK and the world, and have had the opportunity to be judged by distinguished barristers and judges.
Our mooters will gain the opportunity to learn from, be adjudicated by and work closely alongside notable members of the Bar. CULS Mooting provides a rare opportunity for students to learn from and contribute to advocacy at Cambridge.
Please note that this timetable is tentative (as of November 2024) and is not exhaustive.
I. It applies only to moots that CULS Mooting organises, not external moots.
II. It is meant to provide an approximate timeline for when the moots will take place.
III. The various subcommittees will confirm the finalised dates via email.
R1: Lent
R1: 2nd November
R2: 23rd November
R3: January 2025
R4: February 2025
R1: January 2025
R2: January 2025
R3: February 2025
Final: February 2025
R1: 2nd November
R2: 16th November
R3: January 2025
R4: February 2025
R1: 16th November
R2: 30th November
R3: January 2025
R4: February 2025
For enquiries regarding the specific moots we organise:
For chambers and students wishing to make general enquiries: mooting@culs.org.uk.
For urgent matters, you may contact the Masters and Mistress of Moots directly.
The De Smith Moot is sponsored by One Essex Court. It is an individual moot. Participants must have had some prior mooting experience, and moot problems can be on any core area of law.
The BPP Moot is sponsored by BPP Law School. It is a team moot (in pairs). There is no need for participants to have prior mooting experience, and no restrictions on how the team is formed. Moot problems can be on any core area of law.
The Cuppers Moot is sponsored by Atkin Chambers. It is a team moot. There is no need for participants to have prior mooting experience, but teams must come from the same College. Moot problems can be on any core area of law.
The Fledglings Moot is an individual moot for beginners. Participants should not have had any prior mooting experience (for those with only College moot experience, we placed them on the waitlist). Moot problems should only be on first-year areas of law.
There are currently four speed moots. Speed moots usually span the course of a day, unlike other moots which span across a few weeks or months. The problem will be released only on the day of the moot and as such, require less time commitment.
The Oxford University Press & Inns of Court College of Advocacy National Mooting Competition has mooters facing stiff competition from over 60 other universities across the UK.
The problems and rounds are written and judged by distinguished barristers, and thus affords mooters a unique opportunity to learn from and interact with members of the Bar. It is for this reason that the OUP & ICCA National Mooting Competition is both challenging and rewarding. Moot problems were set on a variety of areas, from Conflict of Laws, Family Law, Criminal Procedure and Evidence to Intellectual Property, and the rounds were in turn often judged by barristers who specialised in the subject matter.
Natalie Yeo (Jesus College) and Darius Ng (Girton College) emerged semi-finalists.
The annual Cambridge-UCL Moot was held at UCL on 23 November 2018 for the academic year 2018/2019.
The moot problem was set by Mr Rory Clarke, a barrister from Cornerstone Barristers. The problem was set in Contract Law and the main point of contention was whether the bank in question owed the claimant customer a duty of care. If the bank did owe such a duty, the question then was whether the bank observed reasonable skill and care in executing its duties. Mr John Williams, a barrister from 4 New Square Chambers, judged the moot.
Nicole Chia (Girton College), Alison Lu (Homerton College), Isaac Ong (Homerton College) and Jake Gibbins (Christ’s College) represented Cambridge at the moot.
The Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, having begun in 1960, is widely considered the most prestigious moot court competition in the world. It is the largest too, featuring participants from roughly 700 law schools in 100 countries and jurisdictions. The Competition is a simulation of a fictional dispute between countries before the International Court of Justice, the judicial organ of the United Nations.
The team representing Cambridge this year reached the finals of the national rounds in the UK, and captured several awards at the White & Case International Rounds in Washington, D.C.
Last year’s dispute concerned the majestic Kayleff Yak, an endangered migratory species which had been hunted and whose gallbladders had been expropriated for their medicinal qualities. But given that the survival of the species was indispensable to the cultural and physical survival of various indigenous tribes, such actions gave to claims of environmental degradation, human rights violations, and appropriation of traditional knowledge.
Participants of the Jessup will get an opportunity to develop their skills in legal research, writing submissions, and oral advocacy. The Cambridge Jessup team will be coached by distinguished graduate students and professors in the faculty.
Gabriel Tan (Girton College), Imogen Beltrami (Jesus College), Tiffany Tang (Magdalene College), Christian Halt (Wolfson College), Cambridge Jessup team 2019
The Willem C. Vis Moot International Commercial Arbitration Moot Court Competition is regarded as one of the most prestigious international moot court competitions, and has been called the ‘Olympic Games of Moot Courts’ by the BBC.
The team representing Cambridge this year has reached the Eighth Finals out of 372 participating universities in the Vienna Finals, and has captured honourable mentions in all categories across the field.
This year’s dispute arose in the context of an international sale of goods under the UNCITRAL Rules of Arbitration, the Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods, and the UNIDROIT Principles on International Commercial Contracts.
Participants have an opportunity to participate in various pre-moots, mooting in front of distinguished tribunals and against emerging legal minds representing both common and civil law traditions around the world. Vis Moot is a time-intensive commitment, and the team will be coached by leading experts of the field in both memoranda drafting and oral submissions to the highest standards.
The 2019 Vis team comprised of Katherine Boucher (Jesus College), Kathryn Handley (Lucy Cavendish College), Gabriel Kaufmann (Girton College), Rabin Kok (Peterhouse College), Venus Ma (Newnham College), William Moody (Clare College), and Glen Tay (Homerton College).