LEXISNEXIS MOCK TRIAL COMPETITION 2015

hosted by

FACULTY OF LAW

NELSON MANDELA METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Explanatory Memorandum

Please note that this should be read together with the Programme which is available on the website.

Teams will consist of three members made up of two students and one coach.

The competition will consist of a series of rounds over a period of three days where participating teams will be required to simulate criminal trials based on sets of facts they will be given prior to the round. All teams will participate in Round 1 – 4 after which the four best teams will proceed to the Semi-final Round. The two best teams after the Semi-final Round will proceed to the Final Round.

The teams will be allocated their participating number at the Opening Function which will determine who they argue against in each round as well as whether they will be arguing for the prosecution or the defense.

Round 1 will take place on Wednesday morning, the 9th of September. All teams will receive the set of facts (this will be the first time they see them) and will have an hour and a half to prepare for trial. After the first half an hour the prosecution must hand a prepared charge sheet to the defense detailing the charge. Preparation will take place in the NMMU Library where teams will have access to the Library’s academic law materials and the LexisNexis database. Teams must use this time to prepare their witnesses. Witnesses will be provided by the NMMU and will consist of a plaintiff, accused and court orderly. After the preparation time, teams will be escorted to their trial venues. The trial will last for an hour and a half (45 minutes per side). Teams will be expected to give opening statements and closing statements as well as examine, cross-examine and re-examine witnesses. The rules of criminal procedure should be observed. At the conclusion of the trial the presiding officer will give feedback based on his/her assessment. A judgment in favour of any particular team is not an indication of the points awarded. (See judges’ assessment form available on website). This will conclude Round 1 after which the scores of each team will be captured.

Round 2 will take place on Wednesday afternoon, the 9th of September. The procedure is identical as for Round 1 except that the set of facts will be different from Round 1.

Round 3 will take place on Thursday morning, the 10thof September. The procedure is identical as for Round 1 and 2 except that the set of facts will be different from these rounds.

After Round 3, the average of the teams’ scores will be calculated to determine which teams argue against each other in Round 4. Round 4 will take place on Thursday afternoon, the 10th of September. The procedure to be followed is identical as for the previous three rounds except that the set of facts will be different from these rounds.

After Round 4 the scores of all four rounds will be totaled and the four best teams will proceed to the Semi-final Round. The semi-finalists will be announced at breakfast on Friday morning, the 11th of September. The semi-finalists will again receive their set of facts and the same procedure is to be followed as for the previous rounds. Again, the set of facts will be different. The scores from the previous rounds will be disregarded and the two top teams from the semi-final will advance to the Final Round to be held on Friday afternoon, the 11th of September. The procedure to be followed is identical to the procedure followed in previous rounds with the exception of a full bench of presiding officers and a new set of facts.

The team with the highest score in the Final Round will be the winner of the competition. The winners will be announced at the Closing Function. Prizes will be awarded in the following categories:

  • Best Team Overall
  • Runners-up
  • Best Team in the Preliminary Rounds (Rounds 1 – 4).