2018 WMSU MOOT COURT COMPETITION ON

INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW

INTRODUCTION

The 2018 WMSU Moot Court Competition on International Humanitarian Law (hereinafter
"National Competition") provides a venue for law students to become acquainted with and
proficient on IHL issues, including related conventions, principles, and jurisprudence, as this
is clearly of major concern to the lives of Filipinos. Furthermore, it offers an opportunity for
students to practice and hone their skills in the art of argumentation.

MOOT COURT RULES

I. DEBATE SOCIETY OF CLAW WMSU

The DEBATE SOCIETY OF CLAW WMSU (hereinafter "DSCW") shall have the following
functions and powers, to wit:

1. Organize the Competition;

2. Set the Rules to govern the Competition;
3. Amend, interpret and apply such Rules;
4. Appoint the Judges;
5. Provide the Moot Problem (hereinafter "Compromis");
6. Receive all the Memorials submitted by the participating teams;
7. Have the sole discretion in responding to any requests for clarification; and
8. Disqualify or penalize teams for violation of any of the Rules

II. THE COMPROMIS AND CLARIFICATIONS

A. Announcements

All correspondence and any other materials will be sent through the teams’ facebook page.

B. Clarifications

Teams may submit written requests for clarification. A request for clarification must be
accompanied by a brief explanation of the material significance of the same. Clarifications
must not be requested to obtain facts other than those already contained in the Compromis.

DSCW shall determine the necessity of responding to the request for clarification and shall
respond as it deems fit. Clarifications issued shall be considered part of the Compromis and
will be sent to all team representatives.

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 III. THE MEMORIALS

A. Submission of Memorials

Each team participating in the Competition is required to prepare and submit Prosecution and
Defense Memorials on the Compromis which MUST BE SUBMIITED ON OR BEFORE 5
JANUARY 2018 FOR THE 1ST DRAFT, 19 JANUARY 2018 FOR THE 2ND DRAFT,
AND 2 FEBRUARY 2018 FOR THE FINAL DRAFT. Memorials submitted beyond the
specified period will be given the corresponding point deduction(s).

The Teams are required to submit twelve (4) hard copies of their Prosecution and Defense
Memorials to DSCW officers by 5 FEBRUARY 2018:

Teams must likewise send via electronic mail a copy of each Memorial to
de.so.cl.wm@gmail.com in Microsoft Word format (.docx) on January 5, January 19, and
February 2 of next year. The file name must bear the team number and side
(Format:21Prosecution.doc, 21Defense.doc).

Revisions to the Memorials shall not be allowed once submitted on Feb 2.

Delay in the submission of Memorials shall incur a penalty equivalent to ten (10) points
for every day of delay, up to a maximum of thirty (30) points. A fraction of a day shall
be considered as one day.

B.Format of Memorials

All parts of the Memorial must be in Times New Roman, Size 12,with 1½ line spacing and
printed on standard short bond paper (8½ x 11). Quotations and footnotes shall have the same
format but with single line spacing except between separate footnotes. The Memorials must have
corresponding page numbers in the following format: Page 1 of X.

The Memorials must be stapled on the upper left side.

The Cover Page, Table of Contents, and Index of Authorities must be double-spaced.

The Pleadings section of each Memorial, including the Statement of Facts, Summary of
Arguments, Conclusion/Prayer for Relief and citations, shall not exceed 4,000 words. Words in
excess of the maximum shall have a corresponding deduction in the team's Memorial score, to
wit:

• 1-50 words, deduction of 5 points

• 51-100 words deduction of 10 points
• 101-200 words, deduction of 20 points
• Over 200 words, deduction of 30 points

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C. Parts of the Memorial

1. Cover Page

The cover page should only bear the following information:

• The team number followed by "Prosecution" for the Prosecution Memorial

(Format: 21Prosecution) or "Defense" for the Defense Memorial (Format: 21Defense).
This must be indicated on the upper right corner of the cover page
• Title of the case
• Month of the Competition (Format: February 2018)

2. Table of Contents

The Table of Contents must list all the contents of the Memorial, including the headings
and sub-headings.

3. Index of Authorities

The Index of Authorities provides a list of the authorities cited in the Memorial, i.e., laws,
commentaries, cases, and other articles used as references.

The list must be segregated according to type of source (i.e. treaties, judicial decisions, etc.), and
alphabetically arranged within each category. It must specify the pages in the Memorial where
each authority is cited.

4. Statement of Facts

The Statement of Facts in narrative form contains the stipulations and inferences in the
Compromis. It must present the facts found in the Compromis in a form according to the team's
position without adding or distorting the facts or making unreasonable inferences therein.

5. Summary of the Pleadings

The Summary of the Pleadings provides a substantive summation of the arguments presented in
the Memorial. It should not be a reproduction of the headings and sub-headings found therein.
To be effective, it must present the arguments concisely and direct to the point, preferably in no
more than two sentences.

6. Pleadings (Body of the Memorial)

This is the core of the Memorial. The Pleadings contain the arguments, position, or standpoint
of the team. It provides the law and jurisprudence on which the arguments are founded.

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7. Conclusion/Prayer for Relief

The Conclusion/Prayer for Relief states the remedy the team is asking the Court to order.
This is not to be used for presenting new information or as the summation of the team's
case.

IV. THE PAIRING PROCEDURES

The pairing of teams for the general rounds as Prosecution or Defense shall be determined
through a random draw by DSCW. The DSCW has the power to adjust the pairing in order
to account for absentee teams or other contingencies.

Teams from section A will be matched against teams from section B if possible. No team
shall compete against the same team twice in the general rounds.

The Memorials of the opposing teams will be distributed at least one day before the Moot
Court Competition.

V. THE ORAL HEARING

PROCEDURES

A. The Rules applicable to all the rounds

1. Each team shall consist of a first counsel and a second counsel, as designated
by the team.

2. The order for the oral arguments is as follows:

• Prosecution1
• Prosecution 2
• Defense1
• Defense 2
• Rebuttal, if any (Prosecution1 or 2)
• Surrebuttal, if any (Defense1 or 2)

3. Each team is given a total of 40 minutes to speak, allocated as follows:

• 30minutes to be distributed between the first and second counsel
• Maximum of 10 minutes for rebuttal (Prosecution) or surrebuttal (Defense)

4. Entry of appearance. After introductions, the first counsel shall indicate at the start
how long each counsel will speak and the time allotted for the rebuttal or surrebuttal.
The time of the first counsel shall begin from the entry of appearance.

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5. Time Limitations. The remaining time in the oral arguments, if any, may not be used
to extend the time allocated for rebuttal or surrebuttal. Neither can the time allocated for
rebuttal or surrebuttal be used to extend the time for oral arguments.

6. Rebuttal may be waived. If the Prosecution waives the rebuttal, the Defendant shall
not appear for surrebuttal.

7. A counsel may ask the Court for an extension before the end of his/her designated
time.
The Court has the discretion whether to allow such request for extension.

8. There will be a timekeeper who will notify the counsels when they have:
• 5 minutes left
• 1 minute left
• 30 seconds left
• no time left

9. Any communication at the counsel table shall be in writing to prevent disruption. The
team members must avoid any noise or inappropriate behavior which may disturb the
proceedings.
10. Team members are not allowed to communicate with the audience or their respective
researchers.

11. Participants and members of the audience are not allowed to use electronic devices such
as laptops, tablets, handheld computers, mobile phones, mp3 players, cameras, recorders
and other similar gadgets during the rounds.

B. Rebuttal and Surrebuttal

The Prosecution's Rebuttal shall be limited to the points raised in the Defendant's Oral
Presentations. The Defendant's Surrebuttal shall be limited to the points raised in the
Prosecution's Rebuttal.

VI. COMPETITION SCORING

The scoring shall consist of two parts:

• The scoring of the Memorials;

• The scoring of the Oral Rounds.

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 A. Scoring of Memorials

Each Memorial shall be assessed by members of DSCW and lawyers.

They shall score a Memorial on a scale of one hundred (100) to two hundred (200)
points.

The first draft shall have a weight of 20%, second draft shall have a weight of 30%, and
the final draft shall have a weight of 50% when computing for the Memorial score. This
constitutes both the Prosecution and Defense Memorial.

B. Scoring of the Oral Rounds

In each round, the maximum score for each counsel shall be 200 and the maximum score
for each team shall be 400.The score for each Oral round shall have a weight of 50%.

C. Scores per Round

For each round, the team's aggregate score out of 600 shall be determined by
combining its Memorial score with the two oral presentation scores, pursuant to the above
rules. With regards to scores in the Oral rounds to be computed, whichever score is higher
will be computed.

D. Tie-Breaking Procedure

In case of a tie for a particular slot in the quarter-final round, the team that has the
highest average score for its oral presentations in the general rounds shall proceed to the
next round.

In the event that the tie is still not decided, the team whose first counsel has the highest
average score for his or her oral presentations in the general round shall qualify for
the quarter-final round.

E. Finality of Judging

The scores given by the judges, as computed and verified by the official tabulators,
shall be final.

VII. PENALTIES

A. Memorial Penalties

The Memorial penalty shall be deducted from the Memorial's final score.

The Committee shall notify the teams of the imposed penalties prior to the general
round.

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 SUMMARY
Late submission of memorial
Use of incorrect size/format
Excessive length of pleadings
Failure to include the
necessary information in the
Cover Sheet
Other violations of memorial
format requirements
PENALTY
10 points for every day of delay
(maximum of 30 points)
1 point per violation, up to a maximum of 10 points
• 1-50 words in excess, deduction of 5 points
• 51-100 words in excess, deduction of 10 points
• 101-200 words in excess, deduction of 20 points
• Over 200 words in excess, deduction of 30
points
• 2 points (one-time penalty)
• 2 points (one-time penalty)

B. Oral Round Penalties

SUMMARY PENALTY
Disruptive noise, inappropriate behavior, 10 points
prohibited communication
Use of prohibited electronic devices during the 10 points
rounds

C. Other Penalties

RULE SUMMARY PENALTY

5 points for every
Other penalties (absences and tardiness)
infraction

D. Complaint Procedure

A complaining team must submit a written notification to DSCW within fifteen (15)
minutes from the conclusion of the oral round, if they will allege that any violations have
been committed. The notice must specify clearly the violation and the parties involved.
Failure to follow this procedure shall result in the nullification of the team's complaint.

Reports of alleged violations may also be received by DSCW from assigned bailiffs,
judges and members of the organizing group.

DSCW’s decision on the complaint shall be final.

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 E. Judges prohibited from deducting
penalties

Only the Committee shall deduct penalties from the scores of the oralists. The judges
shall score the round as if no violation was committed by the oralists.

F. Notice of Penalties

The Committee shall notify the teams of the Memorial penalty they incurred prior to the
General Round.

The Committee shall likewise notify the teams of any Oral Round Penalties they incurred.

The Prosecution Memorial and Defense Memorial with the highest scores shall be
adjudged as the Best Memorials for the National Competition.

VIII. INTERPRETATION OF RULES

The Committee shall have absolute discretion to resolve any issues

concerning the interpretation of rules