Florida Bar opens registration for high school moot court competition

Florida Bar High School Appellate Brief Writing & Moot Court Competition participants. High school students from across Florida will get a chance to write appellate briefs and make oral arguments before Florida judges as The Florida Bar opens registration for its annual High School Appellate Brief Writing & Moot Court Competition. This competition offers high school students the opportunity to gain a firsthand understanding of the appellate process by engaging in brief-writing and oral argument exercises based on a fictitious legal case. The competition, sponsored by The Florida Bar’s Law Related Education Committee, is open to all Florida high school students. Students work in teams of two, coached by a teacher or qualified sponsor, to draft a brief for either the petitioner or the respondent, using only the cases, citations and legal authorities provided in the case problem. “The Moot Court Competition offers an invaluable opportunity to aspiring legal minds to dress rehearse a potential legal career through immersion in the process of legal analysis, reasoning, writing, and argument.” said Ali R. Rahnavard, chair of the Moot Court Competition Subcommittee. “The direct interaction between young students and current legal professionals including coaches, judges, and event organizers, can cultivate, especially among any would be first generation lawyers, an interest in pursuing further legal education.” All student teams will have the opportunity to argue before a District Court of Appeal. District competition winners will advance to the state finals in Tallahassee, where they will present their arguments before a three-judge panel at the First District Court of Appeal. The highest-scoring teams will proceed to the final round, in which they will argue before the Florida Supreme Court. In addition to an overall winner, awards will be presented for the Best Brief and Best Oralist, recognizing both exceptional individual and team achievements. As they showcase their legal acumen and oral advocacy skills, participants in The Florida Bar High School Appellate Brief Writing & Moot Court Competition will interact with legal professionals, learn about the legal system and prepare for higher education. For more information about the competition and registration details, visit www.floridabar.org/flmootcourt.