AYL/NZBA Junior Mooting Competition Grand Final

On Thursday 13 July, the AYL and NZBA Junior Mooting Competition Grand Final took place in the Auckland High Court.  Followng the event, Shortland Chambers hosted the prizegiving and post-final function. The event, which has been running as a joint competition through AYL and the NZBA for a number of years, offers practitioners with fewer than 5 years PQE a unique opportunity to practice their court advocacy skills.  Each team works with an accomplished barrister as mentor, and competes in a series of preliminary and final rounds to progress to the Final.
 
The Final was judged this year by Associate Judge Roger Bell and Justice Lang, of the Auckland High Court.  Both Judges were complimentary of the quality of the final moot, both in terms of advocacy skills demonstrated by the competitors, and the treatment of commercial subject matter by four competitors specialising in criminal law.   
 
Congratulations to Hannah Croucher and Devon Kemp, the runners-up, from PDS.  A particular congratulations to the winners of the moot, Matthew Mortimer of Meredith Connell and Yvonne Wang, who practises at the bar as a criminal barrister.
 
A special thanks to Shortland Chambers for hosting the event, and to the wider membership of the New Zealand Bar Association | Ngā Ahorangi Motuhake o te Ture, who were very supportive of the competition.  A number of our members acted as mentors to a number of teams in the preliminary rounds.  A particular thanks is extended to the members of our Senior Bar who generously gave up their time to adjudicate the preliminary and advanced rounds – David Bigio QC, Lady Deborah Chambers QC, David Jones QC, Jane Anderson QC and Daniel McLellan QC. And of course, a particular thanks to the Judiciary who continue to graciously support the training and experience offered to young and up-coming advocates in the profession and at the Bar.

Gretta Schumacher
Barrister, Junior to Shortland Chambers