Virtual Moots V Physical Moots

The COVID-19 compelled people to make amends in their style of living to live their lives, continue their professions, enjoy nature, etc., etc. Due to COVID-19, the majority of moot court organizers have decided to go with virtual moot courts, including the famed moot courts.

After taking the suggestion of Ms. Avani Bansal in her book – Life at Law School, where she suggests the final year law students make a last tweak to their Curriculum Vitae (CV), like a Holy Grail, I sat down to make my own CV. While venturing back to my five years journey as a law student, I became nostalgic when I was jotting down in my CV, the physical moots in which I participated and was recollecting the fun, emotion, tension, preparation, and many other things, that a physical moot court competition ensures to a law student. I participated in five physical moots, out of which – two were K.K. Luthra International Moot Court, one was Surana & Surana Moot Court, and two others were local moot courts. At the cost of self-narcism, I have to say that in Surana & Surana Moot Court, while my team lost in Preliminary Rounds with just one mark, I was adjudged “4th Best Student Advocate”. Just imagine the emotions that go into your team when your team loses by one mark and also imagine the happiness that entails you when you get the “Best Student Advocate” award at the valedictory ceremony! Because, the journey from loss on day one to prize during valedictory is of three days, but the loss makes it seem like thirty days. Why I’m sharing my personal experience is to ask questions to you all (one who participated in physical moots and the one who participated/are participating in virtual moots), that whether same emotions and happiness will you have when your team loses and you or one of your moot partner gets “Best Student Advocate Award” in the same moot, this time a virtual Moot, not the physical Moot? The answer is resounding, ‘NO’. Because virtual moots, let however cheap, convenient, and time-saving might be, cannot give us what the physical moots give. Physical moot courts promise everything to a law student. To concede in all fairness, I did not participate in any of the virtual moot courts, till yet, but I witnessed two virtual moot court finals. And I believe that is enough for the one who has participated in physical moots and witnessed virtual moots to cull out the differences between the two and write an article on it.

Traveling Enjoyment:- First and foremost fervor that a virtual moot court takes away is your travel to a new place and enjoying the beauty of a historical or famous site, let the moot court be in any part of India. Of course, due to travel, we have to dig our pockets deeper, which is not the case with the virtual moot court, but if not during the student days, then when?

Delicious Foods:- Second fervor that a virtual moot court takes away is tasting delicious foods from different places in the country. There are some moot court competitions, like KK Luthra International Moot Court, where the organizers themselves provide you with varied and delicious food. After losing, you can enjoy at least these foods and forget the pain of loss.

Making new friends:- The third and most important thing that a virtual moot court takes away, even from the point of view of the profession, is making new friends from different colleges across India. It is only in the physical moot courts, where different teams across the country participate, you share a room in the place of accommodation with them and make acquaintance, or when your team and opposite team participates in the oral moot court rounds or when you and the participant from the other team sits in the library for making respective notes you make acquaintance with the other college participant and many other instances of meeting with other college participants. These acquaintances with other college participants not only help you to know about their college, but it also helps you in your professional career.

Questioning by Moot Judges:- The fourth and yet another important aspect that a virtual moot court takes away is questioning by the moot court judges. This questioning goes sometimes to the extent of grilling the mooter. Although, in virtual moots questions (not grilling) are being asked by the moot Judges, but by sitting individually from their respective house or office. The fun for the viewer is when all the moot judges sit together and grill the mooter. For the mooter, it is a preparation ground to equip himself/herself with the skill of answering the questions that a real Judge would ask him/her in a real court when he goes to practice after LLB graduation. Besides this, in a physical moot court, you can personally meet the Judge, who judged your oral rounds, and take his suggestions for where you went wrong, what are the areas you can improve upon, etc., etc. Mind you, as all these moot Judges are either practicing Advocates or Judges of a real court, their sharing of tips will definitely come in handy in shaping your professional career, where you can master your “Art of Advocacy”.

Emotions and Enjoyments:- The fifth sheen that a virtual moot court takes out is the emotions on the face of losing teams and euphoric moments on the face of winning teams. Although, still a winner and loser in a virtual moot enjoy or cries respectively by sitting individually in his/her home, that enjoyment or cry respectively during the valedictory ceremony has got its unique blend.

Given the above missing aspects in the virtual moot courts, we cannot completely undermine the virtual moot courts, at least during this compelling situation caused by COVID-19. The same amount of preparation is required from the teams for both the virtual or physical moot court.

Virtual moot court is a need of COVID-19, but I subscribe to the view that the life of virtual moot court shall be only till COVID-19 lives, and it shall die virtually along with the COVID-19. Request:- I request the Judge, who has adorned the moot court Bench, to share his/her views about the physical and virtual moot courts

(The author is a 5^th year LLB student from University College of Law, Osmania University, Hyderabad)