Index

The Annual Oxford University India Moot Court Competition on Constitutional Law 2013-14

INDEX
S. No.
1. 2. 3. 4.

Description
Moot Problem Competition Schedule Registration Form
Note: Online Registration Recommended

Page
2 7 8 10

Competition Rules

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Moot Problem

1. To enable greater participation of the executive branch in the appointment of Judges in the higher judiciary, the Parliament of India has passed the Constitution (One Hundred and Fiftieth Amendment) Act, 2013 (Amendment) to further amend the Constitution of India, along with a new act, the Higher Judiciary (Appointments and Transfer) Act, 2013 (Act) to provide for the composition of the Judicial Appointments Panel ( Panel) for the purpose of recommending persons for appointment as Chief Justice of India and other Judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices and other Judges of High Courts, its functions, procedure to be followed by it and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Both the acts received presidential assent and entered into force after notification in the official gazette. 2. The Amendment replaces the words after consultation with such of the Judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts in the States as the President may deem necessary for the purpose with on the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Panel as referred to in article 124A, in Article 124 clause 2 (a) of the Constitution, and omits the first proviso thereof. It also inserts a new article, 124A, which provides that there shall be a Judicial Appointments Panel, and further prescribes that the Parliament may, by law, provide for, the composition of the Panel. Necessary changes to the other articles of the Constitution, required in view of the new article, have also been made under the Amendment. While the composition of the Panel has been detailed under the Act, this has not been included under the Amendment.

3. The Act further prescribes that the Panel shall make regulations regarding the procedure for the recommendation, short-listing and appointment of Judges in the higher judiciary. However such regulations shall be laid before each House of the Parliament for thirty days while it is in session so as to enable both the houses to propose and agree upon any modifications to such regulations, and any such modifications shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation. It also provides that no act or proceedings of the Panel shall be questioned or shall be invalidated merely on the ground of existence of any vacancy in, or defect in the constitution of, the Panel. Full texts of the aforesaid Amendment and the Act are annexed herewith. 4. In The Bar Association of India v. Union of India, a petition before the Honble Supreme Court of India, the Petitioner, a statutory body representing the legal fraternity, challenged the constitutional validity of the Amendment primarily on the ground that it alters the basic structure of the Constitution, by diminishing the independence of the judiciary. The Petitioner also prayed that the Higher Judiciary Act be struck down as unconstitutional, as consequential relief. The regular bench after framing of the issues opined that the matter involved detailed interpretation of the Constitution which required determination by a bench of a higher number of judges and remitted the matter for consideration before the Chief Justice, who thereafter directed that the matter be placed before a special constitutional bench for final arguments.

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Moot Problem

5. The Union of India contested the petition on various grounds, one of which was that under the Constitution of India, the Supreme Court has no power to hold an amendment to the Constitution to be unconstitutional, if it was made in accordance with the procedure set out under Article 368. The Union of India argued that the basic structure doctrine as outlined by the Court in its prior judgments rests on a mistaken interpretation of the Constitution and should be overruled, and prayed that the Supreme Court depart from its previous decisions insofar as they are inconsistent with this conclusion. The Union of India also argued that the Amendment was made in accordance with the procedure set out under Article 368 and that it does not alter the basic structure of the Constitution. The Union of India therefore prayed that the constitutional validity of the Amendment and the Act be upheld.

6. In a landmark judgment delivered by the Chief Justice of India speaking for the majority, the special constitutional bench of the Honble Supreme Court allowed the petition after hearing it on merit s, thereby setting aside the Amendment, as well as the Act. The majority opinion also stated that the basic structure doctrine is deeply entrenched in the jurisprudence of the Constitution of India, and we are not about to reverse it now .

7. In the lone dissenting opinion, it was stated that the basic structure doctrine is the most vague and undefined concept in Indian constitutional jurisprudence and that the court has neither defined the basic structure nor has it given any tests to determine the basic structure; it has just given certain instances of the basic structure and has always provided that the list is not exhaustive. It further added that in its previous decisions, this court not only incorrectly interpreted Articles 124(2) and 217(1) of the Constitution with respect to the meaning of consultation as concurrence, but also erred while holding that the consultation with the Chief Justice of India refers to a collegium consisting of the Chief Justice and two or four Judges, as the case may be, thereby leading to the creation of the Memorandum of Procedure which laid down the process followed for appointment of Judges to the High Courts and the Supreme Court, prior to enactment of the Amendment and the Act. 8. Aggrieved by the above judgment of the Honble Supreme Court of India, the Union of India has now appealed to the Moot Court primarily on the grounds that the Supreme Court has no power to hold an amendment to the Constitution to be invalid, if it was made in accordance with the procedure set out in Article 368, and that the Amendment does not alter the basic structure of the Constitution. The Respondent asks the Moot Court to affirm the decision of the Supreme Court. The matter is now listed for final arguments.

*
Notes:

The Moot Court has the jurisdiction to hear appeals from decisions of the Honble Supreme Court of India. In hearing such an appeal, the Moot Court can depart from precedents of the Supreme Court of India where it would be lawful for the Supreme Court itself to do so. The Moot Court will decide the case in accordance with the law of India as it existed on September 21, 2013. Locus Standi of the Petitioner is not under challenge.
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Moot Problem

THE CONSTITUTION (ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH AMENDMENT) ACT 2013

An act further to amend the Constitution of India BE it enacted by Parliament in the Sixty-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows: 1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (One Hundred and Fiftieth Amendment) Act 2013 Act, 2013. (2) It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. 2. In article 124 of the Constitution, in clause (2),(a) the words on the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Panel as referred to in article 124A shall substitute and replace the words after consultation with such of the Judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts in the States as the President may deem necessary for the purpose; (b) the first proviso shall be omitted; (c) in the second proviso, for the words Provided further that, the words Provided that shall be substituted. 3. After article 124 of the Constitution, the following article shall be inserted, namely: 124A (1) There shall be a Panel to be known as the Judicial Appointments Panel. (2) Parliament may, by law, provide for(a) the composition of the Panel; (b) the appointment, qualifications, conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson and other members of the Panel; (c) the functions of the Panel; (d) the procedure to be followed by the Panel in discharge of its functions; (e) the manner of selection of persons for appointment as Chief Justice of India and other Judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices and other Judges of High Courts; and (f) such other matters as may be considered necessary. 4. In article 217 of the Constitution, in clause (1), for the portion beginning with the words after consultation and ending with the words the High Court, the words on the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Panel referred to in article 124A shall be substituted. 5. In article 222 of the Constitution, in clause (1), for the words after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, the words on the recommendation of the Judicial Appointments Panel referred to in article 124A shall be substituted. 6. In article 231 of the Constitution, in clause (2), sub-clause (a) shall be omitted.

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Moot Problem
HIGHER JUDICIARY (APPOINTMENTS AND TRANSFER) ACT 2013

An act to provide for the composition of the Judicial Appointments Panel for the purpose of recommending persons for appointment as Chief Justice of India and other Judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices and other Judges of High Courts, its functions, procedure to be followed by it and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. BE it enacted by Parliament in the Sixty-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows:1. (1) (2) This Act may be called the Higher Judiciary (Appointments and Transfer) Act, 2013. It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,(a) Chairperson means the Chairperson of the Judicial Appointments Panel referred to under this act; (b) Panel means the Judicial Appointments Panel referred to under this act; (c) Member means a Member of the Panel and includes its Chairperson; (d) prescribed means prescribed by the rules made under this Act; (e) regulations means the regulations made by the Panel under this Act. 3. (1) The Judicial Appointments Panel, referred to in clause (1) of article 124A of the Constitution, shall consist of(a) the Chief Justice of India, Chairperson, ex officio; (b) two other Judges of the Supreme Court next to the Chief Justice of India in seniority Members, ex officio; (c) the Union Minister in charge of Law and Justice-Member, ex officio; (d) one representative of the legal profession; (e) two eminent persons, to be nominated by the collegium consisting of the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the Leader of Opposition in the House of the People-Members, provided that such eminent persons shall be nominated for a period of three years and shall not be eligible for re-nomination. (2) The Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Justice shall be the convener of the Panel. 4. It shall be the duty of the Panel to recommend persons for appointment as Chief Justice of India, Judges of the Supreme Court, Chief Justices of High Courts and other Judges of High Courts; to recommend transfer of Chief Justices of High Courts and the Judges of High Courts from one High Court to any other High Court; and to ensure that the person recommended is of ability, integrity and standing in the legal profession. 5. In case of appointment of Judge of a High Court, the views of the Governor and the Chief Minister of the concerned State as also of the Chief Justice of High Court shall be elicited in writing in accordance with the procedure as may be specified by regulations made by the Panel.

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Moot Problem

6. The Central Government shall, two months prior to the date of occurrence of any vacancy by reason of completion of the term of Judge of the Supreme Court and a High Court, and within a period of two months from the date of occurrence of any vacancy by reason of death, resignation of the Judge of the Supreme Court and a High Court, make a reference to the Panel for filling up the vacancies. 7. (1) The Convenor of the Panel shall initiate the process of selection by inviting recommendations from the Chief Justices of High Courts, the Central & State Governments in respect of candidates fulfilling the eligibility criteria. (2) The Panel may, by regulations, specify the procedure for short-listing of candidates for considering their appointment as Judges to the Supreme Court or a High Court, as the case may be. (3) The recommendations made by the Panel shall be taken by a vote of majority. 8. The Panel shall meet at such time and place as the Chairperson may decide, and the Panel shall have the power to specify, by regulations, the procedure for the discharge of its functions under the Act. 9. No act or proceedings of the Panel shall be questioned or shall be invalidated merely on the ground of existence of any vacancy in, or defect in the Constitution of, the Panel. 10. The Panel may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make regulations consistent with this Act and the rules made thereunder to carry out the provisions of this Act, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such regulations may provide for matters, including, the procedure for recommendation with respect to appointment of Judge of a High Court; the procedure for short-listing of candidates for considering their appointment as Judges of the Supreme Court; the procedure for short-listing of candidates for considering their appointment as Judges of the High Court; and the procedure to be followed by the Panel in discharging of its functions under this act. 11. Every rule and regulation made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days, which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification to the rule or regulation or both Houses agree that the rule or regulation should not be made, such rule or regulation shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; however, any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation.

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Competition Schedule
DATE & TIME
21 Sep 2013 15 Oct 2013 15 Dec 2013 18 Dec 2013 20 Dec 2013 01 Jan 2014 15 Jan 2014
11.59 PM

EVENT
Release of Moot Case Study (Moot Problem) Release of Research Paper Topics Deadline for Registration of Moot Court Teams Last Date for seeking clarifications to the Moot Problem Publication of Clarifications to the Moot Problem Deadline for Registration of Research Paper teams Deadline for Submission (email) of Memorials for Moot Court Competition Deadline for Submission (email) of Papers for Research Paper Competition Memorial evaluations to be published on the competition website Deadline for submission of hard copy of Memorial Research Paper results to be published on the competition website

01 Feb 2014
11.59 PM

15 Feb 2014 28 Feb 2014 01 Feb 2014

SCHEDULE FOR THE ORAL ROUNDS

VENUE: India International Centre (IIC), Lodhi Road, New Delhi Registration of Teams (Mandatory), Inaugural Function & other programs

14 Mar 2014
4 PM - 9 PM

15 Mar 2014
9 AM - 9 PM

Preliminary Oral Rounds of MCC Quarter Final Oral Rounds of MCC Semi Final Oral Rounds of MCC

16 Mar 2014
9 AM - 9 PM

Final Oral Rounds of MCC Panel Discussion I (Academic Lectures) Panel Discussion II (Contemporary Issues) Research Paper Presentation Distribution of Awards & Certificates VENUE: Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi Alumni Reception

The above dates, timings & events may be changed, if necessary. All participants shall be informed via email about any changes.

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Registration Form

INSTRUCTIONS: Please fill out the following Team Registration form in entirety in Capital Letters. If any field does not apply to your team, please type "Not applicable". Please read the Rules of the competition before submitting this registration form. After completing the form, please scan and email it to: register@oxfordmoot.in If multiple teams wish to apply from any law college, photocopies of this form can be used. Teams may submit the ONLINE registration form at www.oxfordmoot.in, to expedite allotment of the team code.

I.

INSTITUTION DETAILS
Name of Institution Address of Institution City Name of Dean/ Head Contact Email
Please tick the correct option

: __________________________________________________________________ : __________________________________________________________________ : __________________________________ Country: ________________________ : _______________________ : _______________________ Position: _________________________________ Phone : _________________________________

Type of LLB Program : 3-Year LLB 5-Year LLB Other (Please Specify): _____________________

II.

TEAM MEMBER #1
Designation:

Speaker 1 Speaker 2 Researcher 1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year

Name:._________________________________ Date of Birth:________/ _______/_________ Year of Study in LLB:

College Roll No. / Student ID No: .______________Mobile No:_______________________ Email: .________________________________________________________________ Permanent Address: ._______________________________________________________

_________________________________________________ Country:__________________ III. TEAM MEMBER #2

Designation:

Speaker 1 Speaker 2 Researcher 1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year

Name:._________________________________ Date of Birth:________/ ________/________ Year of Study in LLB:

College Roll No. / Student ID No: .______________Mobile No:_______________________ Email: .________________________________________________________________ Permanent Address: ._______________________________________________________

_________________________________________________ Country:__________________

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Registration Form
IV. TEAM MEMBER #3
Designation:

9
Speaker 1 Speaker 2 Researcher 1st Year 2nd Year 3rd Year 4th Year 5th Year

Name:._________________________________ Date of Birth:________/ ________/________ Year of Study in LLB:

College Roll No. / Student ID No: .______________Mobile No:_______________________ Email: .________________________________________________________________ Permanent Address: ._______________________________________________________

_________________________________________________ Country:__________________ V. MISCELLANEOUS

For international teams only: Does your team require a visa letter? Does your team require a Mentor? Yes / No Yes / No

TEAMS SHOULD COMPLETE & SIGN EITHER SECTION VI OR VII BELOW:

VI. DECLARATION BY THE TEAM MEMBERS

We hereby certify that the information given by us hereinabove is true and complete in all material respects, and we understand that the participation of the above team in the moot competition shall be governed by the rules and regulations set by the Moot Organizing Committee / University of Oxford.

_________________________ __________________________ __________________________

Signature of Team Member #1 Signature of Team Member #2 Signature of Team Member #3

VII. DECLARATION BY THE HEAD OF THE INSTITUTION

I ______________________________ being the Principal / Dean / ________________________ of the law school named ______________________________________________________, which is duly recognized under the laws of _________________________(country name) and having the requisite authority to sign this Participation Form and give consent for the participation of my institutes students in the Oxford University India Moot Court Competition 2013-14, hereby inform the Organizers of the Moot of the intention of my institute/ law school to participate in the competition. I have read the Competition Rules and agree and understand that the said rules are binding on the institute / law school and every member of them team (representing the institute/law school) participating in the competition. Signature Designation : ____________________________ : ____________________________ Place Date : __________________________ : __________________________

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10

Competition Rules

The Annual Oxford University India Moot Court Competition on Constitutional Law 2013-14

Rules of the Competition

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~ Oxford University India Moot Court Competition on Constitutional Law 2013-14 ~

Competition Rules

11

~INDEX~
Article No. Description Page No.

DEFINITIONS

12

II III IV V VI VII VIII IX

TEAM COMPOSITION GENERAL RULES COMPETITION STRUCTURE MEMORIAL GUIDELINES EVALUATION OF ORAL ROUNDS EVALUATION OF MEMORIALS SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS POWERS OF THE M.O.C.

13 14 15 16 18 20 21 21

Annexure I

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP

23

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12 Article-I DEFINITIONS

Competition Rules

Advanced Rounds shall mean and refer to the quarter final oral argument rounds, semi final oral argument rounds and final oral argument round of the Competition. Appellant shall mean and refer to the side of the Team which argues on behalf of the Appellant at any given point in the Competition. Case Study and Moot Problem shall mean and refer to the compendium of facts and issues released by the MOC and published on the Official Website along with clarifications and corrections, if any. Clarifications and Corrections shall refer to the official clarifications and corrections of the Moot Problem as provided by MOC and published on the Official Website. Competition shall mean and refer to the Oxford University India Moot Court Competition 2013-14 on Constitutional Law. Competition Rules shall mean and refer to the rules contained herein. The competition shall be conducted as per the Competition Rules. Competition Website shall mean and refer to the website http://www.oxfordmoot.in Draw of Lots means the computerized procedure to determine the side on whose behalf any Team will argue (i.e., Appellant or Respondent) during the Preliminary Rounds and the Advanced Rounds, as well as the procedure to determine the Teams which will argue against each other in the Preliminary Rounds, Quarter Final Round and Semi Final Round. Moot Organizing Committee and MOC shall mean and refer to the official body designated to administer, conduct and regulate the Competition. Memorial means the memorandum of written submissions submitted by any Participating Team in accordance with the Competition Rules. Participant or Team Member shall mean and refer to any member of a Team participating in the Competition. Participating Team or Team shall mean and refer to any registered team of any University/College/ Institution participating in the Competition. Preliminary Rounds shall mean and refer to the qualifying oral arguments rounds of the Competition. Rebuttal shall mean and refer to the set of submissions made by a Appellant at the end of the main arguments of counsel for the Respondent. This shall be replied to, in an appropriate manner in sur-rebuttal, by the Respondent. Respondent shall mean and refer to the side of the Team which argues on behalf of the Respondent, at any given point in the Competition.

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Competition Rules Article-II TEAM COMPOSITION

13

Section 1: Subject to these rules, the Competition is open to all students, enrolled bona fide on a regular basis in an Undergraduate law course or its equivalent conducted by any recognized University/ College/ Institution. All team members of a team shall be students of the same University/ College/ Institution. Section 2: Multiple teams are permitted to enter the Competition from any recognized University/ College Institution. Participation in the competition is free for all teams. Explanation 1: It is envisaged that allowing multiple teams from any institution would make it unnecessary for any institution to hold any internal rounds for selecting a team for the Competition and also allow every participant the opportunity to avail and utilize the entire preparation time of 4 months to prepare their submissions. Explanation 2: It is anticipated that this opportunity will be used judiciously by the interested teams and it is expected that interested teams shall make their best efforts in their written memorial and oral submissions. While there is no formal qualifying or memorial round for participation in the oral rounds, the MOC reserves the right to invite, if necessary, no more than 3 teams from each institution based on the written submissions. Section 3: The Participating Team shall comprise of a minimum of two members and a maximum of three members. In a team comprising of three members, two members shall be designated as Speakers and the third member of the team shall be designated as Researcher. A Team cannot have more than one Researcher. In a team comprising of two members, both the members shall be designated as Speakers, but in such case neither of the two team member would be eligible to take the researchers test or be eligible for the Best Researcher Award (see below). Once an individual has been designated as a speaker or a researcher, such designation cannot be changed after the team registration, unless there exist extenuating circumstances and prior written approval of the MOC is obtained by the concerned team. Section 4: No individual shall be a member of more than one registered team. If any individual joins more than one team, then all teams of which such individual is a team member, shall be disqualified from the competition automatically. Section 5: All individuals registering for the competition must fill the correct details in the team registration form. If required, the MOC may ask any Team to provide any additional details or documents for verification (such as a participants College ID Card, Government Iss ued ID Card etc.) at any stage of the Competition. Section 6: A Team may be accompanied to the oral rounds by a coach or a faculty member etc, but such person shall not be permitted to be present with the team at the time of the Oral Rounds or the Researchers Test.

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14 Article-III GENERAL RULES

Competition Rules

Section 1: Team Registration Process: Each team shall register with the MOC by filling up the online Team Registration Form at www.oxfordmoot.in. The last date for registration for the Competition is December 15, 2013. Section 2: Clarifications to the Moot Problem: A Participating Team may request for clarifications to the Moot Problem via the Competition Website or by email to clarify@oxfordmoot.in. The last date for applying for clarifications is December 18, 2013. All clarifications shall be posted on the Competition Website on December 20, 2013. Section 3: Anonymity of Teams: Every Team shall be allotted a team code after registering for the Competition. The team members shall only use such code during the Competition. No Team or Team member shall disclose their identity anywhere in their Memorial or the Oral Rounds. Non-compliance with this rule may result in immediate disqualification of the Team at any stage of the competition. Section 4: Blog guidelines: A blog has been created on the Competition Website for the participants. Team members must use their team code while posting any comments on the blog and must not disclose their name, college or other identification or any personal details on the blog. Any comments or discussions posted on the blog should be related to the Competition. Section 5: Plagiarism Avoidance Guidelines & Declaration of Authorship: Teams must prepare any written and oral submissions without any external assistance or any sort of plagiarism. The teams must submit one signed copy of the Declaration of Authorship along with each Memorial (format of the aforesaid declaration is annexed to these rules as Annexure-I). The Competition places great importance on academic integrity and the MOC reserves the right to impose a penalty (as deemed appropriate) or even disqualify a team for improper or missing citations or any other form of plagiarism, whether advertent or inadvertent, and the decision of the MOC in such cases shall be final and binding upon the concerned Team. A winning Team may be disqualified retrospectively in the event plagiarism is detected after declaration of the results. Detailed guidelines for plagiarism avoidance are available on the Competition Website under the Resources Section. Section 6 (1): Mentorship Program: Participating Teams who may need guidance during the Competition may request the MOC for a mentor by submitting the relevant form on the Mentorship Program section of the Competition Website once they receive their team code after registration. A team can request a mentor at any stage of the competition, but ideally such requests should be made as soon as possible after the online team registration. Section 6 (2): Powers of the Mentor: It may be noted that a teams participation in the mentorship program is optional. The mentor-team relation is one based on good faith and the mentor has no formal obligation or commitments towards his or her designated team. Every mentor shall have the right to determine the content and frequency of interactions with the designated team. Mentors have the right to decline any requests from the designated team or to discontinue the mentorship at any time, if required. A Team cannot request for a change of a mentor. In the event of any dispute between a Team and a mentor, the decision of the MOC shall be final. Section 7: Citation Format (OSCOLA): All citations in the Memorial must be made using the OSCOLA (The Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities) format. A free PDF copy of the OSCOLA guidelines is available under Resources Section of the Competition Website.

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Competition Rules Article-IV COMPETITION STRUCTURE

15

Section 1: Dates of the Oral Rounds: The Oral Rounds shall be held over a period of two days i.e., March 15-16, 2014. The Inaugural Function and the Orientation Programme will be held on March 14, 2014. The Preliminary Rounds, Quarter Final Rounds and the Semi Final Rounds will be held on March 15, 2014. Final Round will be held on March 16, 2014. Section 2: The Oral Argument Rounds of the Competition shall consist of: Preliminary Rounds Quarter Final Rounds Semi Final Rounds Final Rounds Section 3: Venue for Oral Rounds: Oral Rounds of the Competition shall be held at: India International Centre (I.I.C.) 40, Max Mueller Marg, Lodhi Estate, New Delhi - 110003 INDIA Section 4: Preliminary Rounds: The Preliminary Oral Argument Rounds will be held on March 15, 2014. In the Preliminary Rounds, each team shall have to argue twice, once each on behalf of the Appellant and once of behalf of the Respondent, against different opponent teams. The Draw of Lots for the Preliminary Rounds shall be conducted by the MOC on March 14, 2014 and the results shall be informed to the Teams. Section 5: The 8 Teams with the most number of wins (i.e. two wins) in the Preliminary Rounds will qualify for the Quarter Final Round. In the event that there are more than 8 teams with two wins, then the 8 teams with the highest total marks will qualify for the Quarter Final Round. In the event that there are less than 8 teams with two wins, all the teams with two wins shall qualify for the Quarter Final Round and the remaining teams shall be decided based on number of wins and / or in the order of total marks. The total marks of any team shall be the aggregate of the marks obtained in the Oral Round and the marks obtained for the Memorial. In the event that there is a tie after considering the total marks, the Team with the higher marks for the Oral Rounds (excluding the marks obtained for the Memorial) will qualify for the Quarter Final Round. Section 6: Advanced Rounds: All the Advanced Rounds will be knock-out rounds and only the winning team will advance to the next round. The side on behalf of which a Team will be arguing in each of the Advanced Rounds will be decided by a Draw of Lots. A Draw of Lots shall determine which team which argue against team and for which side (i.e. Appellant or Respondent) in the Quarter Final Rounds and Semi Final Rounds. A Draw of Lots shall determine which team will argue for which side in the Final Round. A Team will be credited with a win in an Advanced Round if its total marks are higher than its opponent Team. In the event that there is a tie after considering the total marks, the Team with the higher marks in the Oral Round will qualify for the next round.

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16 Article-V MEMORIAL GUIDELINES

Competition Rules

Section 1: Format of the Memorial: Each Team is required to prepare a Memorial on behalf of each side (i.e., the Appellant and the Respondent). All the teams are expected to conduct their own research to prepare the Memorial. Every Memorial shall consist of the following mandatory heads (and no additional heads) in the order which they appear: Page Heading: Cover Page Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Index of Authorities Statement of Facts Issues Raised Summary of Arguments Arguments Advanced Prayer Declaration of Authorship (Annexure-I Below) Maximum number of pages: 1 NA NA NA 1 1 1 20 1

Section 2: Supplementary Volume (Optional): Along with the Memorials, Teams may choose to submit a supplementary volume. Any relevant articles/ materials/ case law may be provided as a supplementary volume to the Memorial. The supplementary volume, if any, must also be neatly bound and colour coded, like the Memorial, and must not contain any reference to the names of the Participants or to their Universities/ Colleges/ Institutions. The supplementary volume cannot exceed 300 pages. A separate supplementary volume may be made for each side i.e. Appellant and Respondent. Copies of articles/materials/case-laws which are not appended to the memorials or referred to in the memorials may not be relied upon at the time of oral arguments. No team would be allowed to hand over any additional material to the judges while presenting their oral arguments. Teams will not be marked on the supplementary volume, if any, while judging their Memorials; however a team may be given a total of upto 5 marks (extra credit) for exceptionally good supplementary volumes and the same, if applicable, would be added to such teams total marks. Teams may submit the supplementary volume along with their Memorials using the submission guidelines for the Memorials. Team must also carry two sets of the supplementary volume to every oral round of the Competition.
Citation Format (OSCOLA): All citations in the Memorial must be made using the OSCOLA (The Oxford University Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities) format. A free PDF copy of the OSCOLA guidelines is available under Resources Section of the Competition Website.

Section 3: Cover Page: The Cover Page of each Memorial must contain the following information: Team Code (On Top Right Corner) Name of the Competition & Year The Cause Title

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Competition Rules
Section 4: The Memorial shall be typed with the following mandatory formatting specifications: Paper Size Ink Color Font Type Font Size Line Spacing Character Spacing Margins Duplex Printing : : : : : : : : A4 Black Times New Roman 12 1.5 line spacing Normal 1 inches on all 4 sides Not Permitted

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For footnotes, the formatting specifications are: Font Type : Times New Roman Font Size : 10 Line Spacing : Single Character Spacing : Normal Section 5: Submission Procedure for electronic copy of the Memorials: All teams shall send an electronic copy of each Memorial in both .docx and .pdf formats by email to memorials@oxfordmoot.in on or before 11:59 PM on January 15, 2014. Each Memorial for each side should be submitted as one single file and not in several files. A signed copy of the Declaration of Authorship (See Annexure-I below) may be attached as a separate file in .pdf format after scanning. Any violation of this rule may result in penalties in accordance with the relevant rules contained herein. Section 6: It is the responsibility of each Team to ensure that the electronic copies of the Memorials can be opened legibly with Microsoft Office 2010 or Microsoft Office 2 007 (.docx format) and .pdf format. The attachments shall be named according to the team code and the party for which the Memorial is proposed, for example, a team having team code 001 shall name the .docx version of its Memorial for the Appellant as 001 A.docx and its Memorial for the Respondent as 001 R.docx. Section 7: Submission Procedure for hard copy of the Memorials : Teams shall also ensure that 5 sets of hard copies of the memorials (5 on behalf of each side) alongwith one set of each supplementary volume (if any) and signed Declaration of Authorship (See Annexure-I below) must reach the MOC by 11:59 PM on February 28, 2014 at the following address by mail or courier (teams shall not deliver the Memorials by hand): Moot Organizing Committee (MOC) Oxford University India Moot Court Competition Third Floor, D-48, Defence Colony, New Delhi-110024 INDIA Section 8: The hard copies of the Memorials and/or supplementary volumes sent by the teams to the MOC must be the exact print outs of the electronic copies submitted. If it is found that there is any discrepancy between the hard copies and the electronic copies of the Memorials (and any supplementary volume), the Participating Team is liable to be disqualified from the Competition or face a penalty, at the discretion of the MOC. Section 9: The Memorial shall be spiral bound. The following colour scheme shall be followed for the cover page of the Memorial (and supplementary volumes, if any):
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APPELLANT : RED RESPONDENT : BLUE Section 10: The Participating Teams are required to carry hard copies of Memorials for their personal use, which are excluded from the 5 sets already submitted as per the relevant rules herein. Section 11: The Memorial shall not contain any annexure, photographs, graphs, diagrams or any other representation of this kind. Section 12: Footnotes should be limited to only citations or any other information relevant to the arguments. In no event shall footnotes contain extra or irrelevant information and in no case shall footnotes contain arguments. Section 13: Each Team shall be provided with the copy of the Memorial of the opponent Team at the Draw of Lots for the respective Rounds. Section 14: Any Memorial violating any of the specifications mentioned above will be penalized according to the following scheme: Late Submission of the Memorials (both hard copies and electronic copies) after the last date of submission will result in a penalty of 2 marks for each day of delay. Exceeding page limit of the Memorials will result in a penalty of 1 mark per extra page. Not following the specified font size, font type, line spacing, page margin, page size and colour of the cover page will result in a penalty of 1 mark per page. Failure to include a specified part of the Memorial will result in a penalty of 2 marks per specification. Submitting electronic copies of each memorial in more than one single file will result in a penalty of 2 marks. Delay of more than 7 days in submitting the Memorial shall lead to disqualification of the team.

Article-VI EVALUATION OF ORAL ROUNDS

Section 1: The order for Oral Pleadings throughout the Competition shall be as under:

Speaker 1 for Appellant Speaker 2 for Appellant Speaker 1 for Respondent Speaker 2 for Respondent Rebuttal & Sur-Rebuttal
Section 2: Ex-Parte rounds: In case any opponent team fails to appear in an Oral Round, the Rounds shall be conducted ex-parte and the scoring shall be done as if the defaulter team had been present and arguing. For determining whether a Team arguing ex-parte has won that round or not, that Teams score should be higher than the average score of all Teams in that round. Section 3: Teams, while submitting their oral arguments, should not pass any material for reference to the Judges. Speakers cannot hand out any materials to the Judges, unless asked for by a Judge. Section 4 (1): Time Duration of Preliminary Rounds: In the Preliminary Rounds each Team shall speak for a period of not more than 25 minutes (including rebuttal/ sur-rebuttal) and no individual speaker is permitted to speak for more than 15 minutes. No Participating Team shall be allowed more than 5 minutes for rebuttal/sur-rebuttal. Section 4 (2): Time Duration of the Quarter Final Round: In the Quarter Final Round, each team shall speak for a period of not more than 45 minutes (including rebuttals/ sur-rebuttals) and no
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individual speaker is permitted to speak for a more than 25 minutes. No Participating Team shall be allowed more than 10 minutes for rebuttal/sur-rebuttal. Section 4 (3): Time Duration of the Semi Final Round : In the Semi Final Round each Team shall speak for a period of not more than 45 minutes (including rebuttal/sur-rebuttal) and no individual speaker is permitted to speak for a more than 25 minutes. No Participating Team shall be allowed more than 10 minutes for rebuttal/sur-rebuttal. Section 4 (4): Time Duration of the Final Round : In the Final Round each team shall speak for a period of not more than 45 minutes (including rebuttal/sur-rebuttal) and no individual speaker is permitted to speak for a more than 25 minutes. No Participating Team shall be allowed more than 10 minutes for rebuttal/sur-rebuttal. Section 4 (5): The time schedule must be strictly followed by all Teams. For the purposes of calculation of time in the oral rounds, the time taken by any speaker shall be rounded up to the next minute. For example, if Speaker 1 for the Appellant takes 10 minutes & 5 seconds, it will be rounded up to 11 minutes for the purposes of the Competition Rules. Section 5: Before the start of the Oral Rounds of any Team, the Speakers of the Team shall inform the Court Room Officers (who will be indicated) of the order of speaking as well as allocation of time between themselves and the time reserved for Rebuttal and whether Speaker 1 or Speaker 2 would be responsible for the Rebuttal. Once so informed, these timings shall not be changed. If a Speaker speaks for more than the time reserved for him/her, the extra time used by such Speakers shall be deducted from the time allotted to the second Speaker of that team. If the second Speaker exceeds the time allotted to him/her, such time exceeded shall be deducted from the time reserved for Rebuttal/Sur-Rebuttal. Exceeding time limits may also result in marks being deducted. Section 6: No Researcher of any team will be permitted to speak (except in exceptional circumstances after the approval of the MOC) but shall be allowed to communicate discretely with his/her team members. Section 7: Electronic Devices: During the Oral Rounds, Teams shall not be allowed to use any electronic devices such as laptops, LCD projectors and video cameras. All mobile phones will be required to be Switched-off or put on Airplane Mode when hearings are in progress. Section 8: Dress Code: The dress code for the competition is formal. Men are required to wear a dark suit with a white shirt and a black tie. Women are required to wear a white shirt, dark trousers/skirt and a black jacket. Gowns and bands are not permitted to be worn by the Participants in the Competition. Section 9: Any Team which violates any of the Rules with respect to the Oral Rounds may be penalized. The decision of the Judges shall be final in this regard. Section 10: Any form of scouting during the Competition is strictly prohibited and may result in instant disqualification. Section 11: If a Team believes that a violation of the rules of the Competition has taken place at any stage of the Oral Rounds, the Team(s) within 15 minutes after the completion of the Round, should register a complaint with the Court Room Officer(s) or any MOC member(s). Team(s) shall not approach the Judges with any complaint under any circumstances. The Court Room Officers shall bring the complaint to the attention of the MOC forthwith. The MOCs decision in this regard shall be final and binding upon the Teams.

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Section 12: Allocation of Marks for Oral Rounds: The Oral Rounds shall be marked out of a total of 70 per Judge. However, for the purpose of calculation of the Teams score, the average score of all the Judges shall be taken. The allocation of marks in the Oral Rounds shall be as follows:

Marking Criterion

Marks Allocated 25

Knowledge of Law & Facts (including Use of Authorities) Advocacy Skills Court Craft Time Management TOTAL MARKS

25 15 05 70

Section 13: To ensure uniformity, each Judge will be briefed in advance regarding the marking criteria. The decision of the Judges regarding the allocation of marks in the Oral Rounds shall be final. In the event of any dispute, the decision of the MOC will be final.

Article-VII EVALUATION OF MEMORIALS

Section 1: Evaluation of the Memorial: Every Memorial shall be marked out of 30 in accordance with the following criteria:

Marking Criterion Language Legal Analysis Clarity of Arguments Presentation (including attention to detail in written work) TOTAL MARKS

Marks Allocated 05 10 05 10

30

Section 2: Evaluation of Researcher: If a Team includes a researcher, the researcher will be eligible to participate for the Best Researcher Award. The combined marks obtained in the Researcher Test and the Memorial shall be used to determine the best researcher. The weight given to the Researcher Test and Memorial shall be as follows:

50% Marks : Memorial 50% Marks : Researchers Test

Section 3: Researchers Test Format: The Researchers Test shall include upto 30 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) and up to three subjective questions that would require short written answers (about 100 words each). The Researchers test will be conducted on March 15, 2014 after the Preliminary Round. There will no negative marking for incorrectly answered MCQs. Section 4: The decision of the Judges regarding the allocation of marks for the Memorial and Researchers Test shall be final. In the event of any dispute, the decision of the M.O.C. shall be final.

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Competition Rules Article-VIII SCHOLARSHIPS & AWARDS

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The members of the Winning Team be eligible to be awarded a scholarship for a post-graduate degree (BCL or MJur) at the Faculty of Law, Oxford University, subject to the rules of the competition. Members of the Winning Team shall also be given a sponsored trip to the University of Oxford and the Faculty of Law, Oxford. The Runner up Team shall be awarded a Trophy and a cash prize of INR 15,000. The Best Memorial Award will be given to the Team with the highest marks in the Memorial. It carries a cash prize of INR 7,500 (for the team) and a certificate. The Best Speaker Award will be given to the speaker with the highest marks at the end of the Preliminary Rounds based on oral submissions. It carries a cash prize of INR 7,500 and a certificate. The Best Researcher Award will be given to the researcher with the highest marks. It carries a cash prize of INR 5,000 and a certificate. A Certificate of Participation shall also be given to all participants of the Preliminary Rounds.

Article-IX POWERS OF THE M.O.C.

Section 1: The MOC reserves the right to amend, modify, change or repeal any of the Competition Rules at any point of time without notice to the Participating Teams or any other parties. Section 2: The MOC reserves the right to take decisions on any matter not mentioned in the Competition Rules. Any such decision taken by the MOC shall be final and binding upon all parties. Section 3: The MOC reserves the right to interpret any of the Competition Rules. Any such interpretation taken shall be final and binding upon all parties. The MOC may depart from these Competition Rules in exceptional circumstances at its sole discretion without giving notice to any parties. Section 4: No audio or videotaping of oral pleadings is permitted without the permission of the MOC. The MOC reserves all rights to audio and videotaping, or any other form of audio or visual reproduction, of any Oral Round or part thereof. Section 5: The Copyright in the Memorials submitted by the Participating Teams shall vest with the University of Oxford. The MOC shall not be responsible for any liability accrued to any person or for any loss caused to any person because of the content of the Memorials. Section 6: All decision of the MOC regarding any aspect of the Competition or in case of any dispute between any parties shall be final and binding upon all the concerned parties. Section 7: The scholarship to the members of the winning team shall be towards student fees and certain maintenance expenses. Such scholarship shall be granted at the sole discretion of OUSI. The winners must have secured admission to the BCL course at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford on their own and have confirmed their place on the course and fulfilled all the other requirements. The admission process is conducted solely by the University of Oxford and OUSI has no involvement in this process. Participating in this Completion shall not, in any manner whatsoever, be connected with any admission application of any applicant to the
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University of Oxford for any course. Participants must enter this Competition knowing that they may or may not be granted admission to the University of Oxford even if they win the Competition. The scholarship amount cannot be claimed if a winner fails to be admitted to the BCL or MJur course at the Faculty of Law, University of Oxford or secures admission but does not confirm they will take up their place on the course, or fails to join the Program after confirming their place on the court, or receives any other scholarship or funding to study the same course. The scholarship may be modified, reduced, withdrawn or cancelled at any time at the sole discretion of the OUSI without assigning any reason thereof to any party or parties, and, in the event of any dispute, OUSIs decision in this regard shall be final and binding upon the concerned party or parties. Detailed terms and conditions relating to the scholarship shall be available on the Competition Website. For the purposes of the award of scholarship, or even otherwise, the words winning team shall mean and refer to the team which wins the final oral argument round of the competition.

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ANNEXURE-I
TEAM CODE Name of Team Member #1 Name of Team Member #2 Name of Team Member #3 Memorial for : : : : :

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP
__________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________ __________________________________________

INSTRUCTIONS: Please print two copies of this form. Then complete, sign and attach one copy to each Memorial at the time of submission attach as this annexure as a scanned file at the time of electronic copy of the Memorials to the MOC, and attach the original copy of this annexure at the time of submitting hard copies of the memorial.

APPEALLANT RESPONDENT

Note: There is extensive information and guidance on academic good practices and plagiarism avoidance under the Resources Section of the competition website at www.oxfordmoot.in

Please tick to confirm the following:

1. 2. 3. I am aware of the MOCs regulations concerning plagiarism. The piece of work that we are submitting is entirely our own work except where otherwise indicated. This work has not been submitted, either wholly or substantially, to any person or institution for any purpose, except where indicated in this submission. We have clearly indicated the presence of quoted or paraphrased material and referenced all sources. We have not received any assistance from any supervisor(s), faculty members or any other persons while preparing this submission. We have not sought assistance from any professional agency. We have not copied any material from other pieces of work that we have previously submitted for assessment, or otherwise, to any person or institution, except where indicated in this submission. We agree to retain an electronic copy of this submission until the publication of final round results of the competition on March 16, 2014. We agree to submit this copy to be reviewed for excess word count and/ or plagiarism.

4. 5.

6. 7.

8.

9.

________________________________
Signature of Team Member #1

________________________________
Signature of Team Member #2

________________________________
Signature of Team Member #3

Date: __________________________

Place: __________________________

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