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Clubs & Competitions

Student members have the opportunity to participate in our Mooting and Debating Workshops, along with various student competitions.

Mooting & Debating Clubs

All student members of the Inn are encouraged to get involved in our Mooting and Debating Clubs. They provide excellent experience for pupillage interviews and future appearances in court, as well as networking opportunities with members of Hall. Both clubs also take part in various internal and external competitions. Competition selections are usually held during club meetings unless otherwise advertised. Most competitions are limited to those currently studying for the GDL (Graduate Diploma in Law) or Bar Practice Course but members who are pre/post-bar course are still very welcome to attend the club meetings. If you are a Lincoln’s Inn student member and would like to join either mailing list for the 2023/24 academic year, please email the Debating Secretaries ([email protected]) or the Mooting Secretaries ([email protected]).

Debating Club

Mooting Club 

Thursday 18 January 2024

Tuesday 16 January 2024

Thursday 08 February 2024

Tuesday 06 February 2024

Thursday 15 February 2024

Monday 12 February 2024

Tuesday 05 March 2024

Monday 18 March 2024

The Lincoln's Inn Debating Shield and Crowther Shield.

Student Competitions

The Inn runs five annual competitions for Lincoln’s Inn student members. Participation in these competitions has proven fantastic experience for future barristers and excellent CV material. Please note, participation at Inn competitions, will not count towards any qualifying sessions.

Crowther Shield Public Speaking Competition

This competition gives students the opportunity to present a plea in mitigation on behalf of an historical or fictional character under timed conditions. Previous cases used include Guy Fawkes (conspiracy to cause an explosion), Lady Macbeth (soliciting a murder) and Goldilocks (burglary and criminal damage).

 

The competition was held on Thursday 07 December 2023, with 12 students taking part. Congratulations to the winner of this year’s competition Vanessa Jessop, who won with her defense of Delilah (Assault occasioning actual bodily harm upon Samson by cutting his hair. Judges 16: 17-20).

Inter-Provider Mooting Competition

This competition is to find the best mooting team from each of the Bar Course providers. Preliminary selection rounds will be held for Lincoln’s Inn students at the BPTC Providers, using a speed-mooting system. The two highest scoring students will go through to represent their Provider in the final rounds, when the teams compete against each other to decide the winning team.

The winners for 2022/23 are Sebastian Dack-Owens and Harry McCourt.

Debating Shield

This is an internal debating competition to find the best debating team in the Inn. Team selection will be held at the final Debating Club meeting of the year. Participants must have been selected at this Debating Club Workshop in order to progress to the final. The motion will be announced on the day and the final follow the format of a “British Parliamentary Debate”.

The winners for 2022/23 are Kadira Pethiyagoda and Nimansa Thalduwa.

Gluckstein Advocacy Prize

This is a competition to award the Sir Louis Gluckstein Prize for the best junior advocate at the Inn. It is open to current Bar Course students and those up to one year Call. Competitors are asked to prepare two exercises, a mixture of criminal, civil and family, and will be allocated randomly. The competition will consist of an initial round from which the judges will select up to eight participants to compete in the final.

The winner for 2022/2023 is Dominic Shingler.

Student Law Journal

The Lincoln’s Inn Student Law Journal is a fantastic opportunity for students to add a publication to their CVs and pupillage applications.

 

Criteria:

  • Those submitting an entry must be a current student member of Lincoln’s Inn.
  • Submissions can either be legal essays/articles or legal case-notes.
  • The maximum word limit is 3000 words.
  • Only one essay entry per student.
  • Essays must be submitted in Microsoft Word document format.
  • All entries must conform to the Oxford Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities (OSCOLA).
  • Footnotes are required but bibliographies are not. Footnotes are included in the word count.

 

Your submission can be on any legal area of interest. All entries will be reviewed by a panel of Benchers and barristers who will select the entries to be included in the journal. After selection, the journal will be published online with hard copies being stored in the Inn’s library. The panel will also select what, in its opinion, is the best entry which will be awarded the Lincoln’s Inn Law Journal Prize and will receive £100. Students who have an essay selected will be required to sign a plagiarism declaration before publication.

 

Essays written as part of a student’s degree may be submitted for selection providing:

  • The student declares that the essay has previously been submitted as part of a previous academic course in their email when they submit it to the Inn.
  • The essay is reworked as to make it currently relevant.
  • The essay has not been published anywhere.

 

The winner for 2022/23 is Zain Sheikh. You can read this years Student Law Journal here.

Competition Dates & Entry

Eligibility 

Ballot Entry or Selection Night

Date of Final

Crowther Shield Public Speaking Competition

Student members of the Inn.

Ballot opens late October 2023.

Thursday 07 December 2023.

Inter-Provider Mooting Competition

Current Bar student members.

  • London Bar Course Providers – the teams are selected at the Inn, at the final Mooting Club meeting (Monday 18 March 2024).
  • Outside of London Bar Students – selection arranged by Student Representatives.

Saturday 08 June 2024.

Debating Shield Competition

Student members of the Inn.

Selection at the final Debating Club Workshop (Tuesday 05 March 2024).

Tuesday 30 April 2024.

Sir Louis Gluckstein Advocacy Prize

Members of the Inn who are up to one year post-Call.

Ballot opens February 2024.

Saturday 20 April 2024.

Student Law Journal

Student members of the Inn.

  • Call for papers – end of 2023.
  • Deadline for submission – TBC.

TBC.