LAW AND EXTRA-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES : IMPORTANCE OF COMPETITIONS IN A LAW STUDENTS LIFE

AUTHOR- NIYATI VISHWAKARMA*

EDITOR- RIYA LUHADIA

WHAT IS COMPETITION?

Competition is"The act or state of attempting to get or achieve something by eliminating or achieving dominance over others or other people" or "An operation carried out by a group of people or organizations, each of whom is attempting to outperform the others."

Academics, extracurricular activities, and social life all play a role in every student's life. A student's experience in law school is dependent on how he or she perceives and accepts it.Judges, advocates, and lawyers with good knowledge and expertise are needed for the betterment of society. Producing a competent graduate having proper legal knowledge is a difficult challenge. Considerable effort and dedication are required to achieve this.

Competitions or extracurricular activities could be the necessary alternatives apart from regular education to find the best among future Attorneys and Judges. Moot Court, Arbitration, client counseling, and other competitions are examples of activities that help any law student become a better lawyer because they are related to the study of law.

IMPORTANCE OF COMPETITION IN THE LIFE OF LAW STUDENT

Law schools are highly competitive. Out of the regular curriculum, students can take part in various other contests such as Moot court, customer counseling, mediation, study, debate, mooting, writing legal essays, etc.

The law students can develop from competitions like the Client counseling competition, mediation contest, the trial advocacy contest, Youth Parliament, parliamentary debates, and so on because these competitions enhance student skills and make their dreams a reality. A lawyer trains for the environment outside the law school as he/she participates in these activities. So, it helps to improve the language order.

There are some important factors as to why one should take part in law school competitions[1]:

• The first is the chance to develop skills required in the field of law that is not learned at traditional law schools but after participating in various competitions. Many of these competitions are essential for a promising career in law, including skills like conducting a client interview, writing an appeal brief, cross-examining a witness, and writing and issuing an appropriate declaration of openness and closure. Competition teams offer a chance to learn by themselves in an atmosphere where an error doesn't harm a customer or make a legal misconduct argument.

• Secondly, competitions offer instant feedback. At tournaments, contestants collect input after each round and use this feedback during the next round.

• Thirdly, teams provide valuable opportunities for social interaction. Students in a contest also have similar, life-long, personal, and professional links. The chance to encounter active practitioners also includes participating in a squad. The connections they have made with professionals who trained them, judge practices, or judge competition rounds also give students interviews and job opportunities. Practitioners hired as mentors and judges from colleges usually belong to the practical bar, and the chance to prove before them in law is priceless.

• Fourthly, the competition looks lovely on a resume. It allows students with average degrees to shine differently. It will enable students with stellar degrees to show that their talents go far beyond the capacity to take a timely, dogmatic examination.

• Lastly, the competition gives us a chance to fly, meet law students from around the country and the world, and follow methods of lobbying that are different from what you learn at school.[2]

TYPES OF COMPETITIONS

MOOT COURT

The most common mode of competition for law schools is Moot Court. Moot court contests are an excellent platform to advocate appeals. Competent are given a problem in advance that usually covers the facts of the relevant dispute and a disputed ruling of the lower court. After that, competitors must examine and brief the questions before entering an oral debate. An Appeals Jury of Industry Judges scored and criticized entrants. Moot Court supports students in improving their law-related learning, publishing, analysis, and oral advocacy.

CLIENT COUNSELLING

In a Client counseling competition, players play counsels and are approached with a possible new client. The participants are given a one- or two-sentence explanation of the reason for the client's visit before the competition. The participants are given a much more detailed fact pattern at the competition. A jury of judges scores and critiques the contestants after they interview the client, advise the client on the legal issue, and rate and criticize the client. These competitions assist students in developing interviewing and counseling skills as well as learning clinical responsibility norms.

ARBITRATION

Arbitration is a method of alternative dispute resolution that emerged to prevent Court litigation and resolve the disputes quickly and amicably. And an arbitration hearing is similar to a small claims trial. The participants present evidence and make arguments supporting their positions. After the hearing, the arbitrator decides in favor of one side or the other.

An arbitration competition, like a trial competition, gives competitors advance notice of the problem. After that, competitors plan exhibits, opening and closing statements, and witness direct and cross-examination. A jury of arbitrators scores and critiques competitors. Arbitration competitions help students learn many of the same skills as trial teams, but in a less formal environment with looser rules of procedure and proof.

NEGOTIATION

A negotiation competition is a competition in which legal agreements are simulated. Competitors are given a standard set of details known by all participants and confidential information known only by the participants representing one hand. The contestants then take on the roles of prosecutors and discuss a series of legal issues. The negotiation situation varies depending on the round and level, even though all simulations are about the same general topic. The contestants are scored and critiqued by a panel of judges.

DEBATES

Debates are full of fun. There is a myth amongst various students who are into their academics that parliamentary debates will not help much for the CV or the profession, but it is the other way around.

Debaters are a class of people who grabs everybody's eye. Debating helps to enhance the imagination power, creativity as well as intensity of logical argumentation. This forms the bunch of crucial expertise a lawyer advisor ought to have.

Discussion is all about combining unplanned and simultaneous logical arguments. In addition to all this, there are a great many things you can like Mock Qualifying rounds, MUNs, Mock Arbitration, Negotiation, and Mediation Activity, Customer Counselling Contests, even cultural events, and sports like Virudhika, Strawberry Fields, etc.[3

CONCLUSION

The curriculum requires a solid training package to provide meaningful education, knowledge, and input to all learners. I feel these contests are one of the critical components for law students to acquire expertise in law. As the level of exposure, they provide to students is enormous, the knowledge and exposure gained in the area are also constructive, as proficient lawyers, judges, and academicians can help them. Thus, these competitions help students learn and also encourage them to develop and demonstrate their abilities.

REFERENCES [1]https://abaforlawstudents.com/2018/08/29/law-school-competition-teams-practicing-for-practice/ [2]https://www.kaptest.com/study/law-school-life/how-to-overcome-competitiveness-in-law-school/ [3]https://www.academia.edu/29773683/Advantages_and_disadvantages_of_competition_in_learning_Essay_Assignment_

*The Author is a 2nd year B.A.LLB (Hons) student at Jagran Lakecity University, Bhopal.

Disclaimer: The opinions and views in this article are personal and independent opinions of the author. VAIDHA doesn't hold any liability arising out of this article