The Common Law Section offers a wide variety of internal opportunities for students interested in pursuing studies in Advocacy.  Our two internal moots, the Nelligan O’Brien Payne Moot Court Competition and the Gowling WLG Moot Competition, offer first-year students a chance to get hands-on experience in appeal scenarios while developing written and oral advocacy skills. 

Participation in a first-year moot also allows students to evaluate whether they have the ability and interest to take part in one of the many external moot court competitions available to upper-year students.  We sponsor many competitive advocacy teams that have achieved great success at both national and international levels in subject areas that range from criminal law to international commercial arbitration. Upper-year students may also select from a wide range of optional advocacy courses, including intensive practical courses in trial advocacy or interviewing, counselling and negotiation. 

Also available are opportunities to work at one of the law school’s three legal clinics:  the uOttawa-Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic, the University of Ottawa Community Legal Clinic and the Samuelson-Glushko Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic (CIPPIC).  These clinics blend legal pedagogy with hands-on public interest and community advocacy, giving students access to practical training and experience.

Common Law’s many internal opportunities can help to equip students with everything they need to pursue a successful career in advocacy.

Each year, the Common Law Section sends advocacy teams across Canada and around the world to compete in a wide range of moot court competitions.  Students and coaches from the law school have succeeded in establishing the University of Ottawa as a leading institution in some of the most prestigious competitions at home and abroad.

Many competitors have also distinguished themselves with individual awards, demonstrating first-class advocacy skills and strong abilities in trial and arbitration scenarios.  The law school takes great pride in the performance and achievements of each of its teams and salutes the hard work, dedication and team spirit of all coaches and competitors.

Please watch this information video before selecting a tryout timeslot.

Tryouts for the 2024-2025 year will take place September 19-21, 2024.

To reserve a tryout spot please follow this link. 

For the French moots (September 21), please follow this link.

Once all spots are filled, we will add more spots.

In addition to reserving a tryout spot, we will ask you to upload a cover letter (optional), up to date transcript - unofficial is fine – (mandatory), and your current course schedule that indicates your Fall, January, and Winter term availabilities (mandatory).

General Moot tryout problem for 2024-2025 found here

The tryouts for the Walsh Negotiation Competition are on October 26, 2024. 
The deadline to register with Prof. Rockman is October 13, 2024. 
More information can be found in this video.
 

Below, is a list of moots we typically (but not always) participate in from year to year.

English Moots

• Arnup Cup (Criminal law – Potentially leading to Sopinka)
• Bowman Tax Moot
• Canadian Corporate/Securities Competition
• Competition Law moot
• Foreign Direct Investment Moot
• Gale Cup
• Harold G. Fox Intellectual Property Moot
• Julius Alexander Isaac Diversity Moot
• National Aboriginal Law Moot: Kawaskimhon Moot
• Oxford International Intellectual Property
• Torts Law moot
• Walsh Family Law Moot
• Walsh Negotiation Competition
• Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot
• WTO/ELSA WTO Law Moot

French and Bilingual Moots

• Concours Charles-Rousseau (Droit international public)
• Concours de plaidoirie en droit de l'immigration, des réfugiés et de la citoyenneté
• Concours Michel Bastarache (Droits linguistiques)
• Coupe Guy-Guérin (Droit pénal (Arnup, mais en français) – conduisant à Sopinka
• Coupe Laskin/Laskin Moot (Constitutional/Administrative law)
• Tribunal-école Moncton-Ottawa (Droit privé)

Not all competitive moots are offered every year due to budgetary constraints.

If you have questions, email Professor Anthony Daimsis at [email protected].