Schools battle it out in court
FAIRHOLME College and Toowoomba State High School have cemented a place in the 2018 University of Southern Queensland’s Secondary Schools Moot Competition grand final.
The Fairholme team of Sienna Davis, Lilli Anderson and Alissa Wood defeated Hillbrook Anglican College.
The Toowoomba State High School side which includes Kody Buchan, Kaitlyn Cairns and Jemilla Strode Smith outpitched Toowoomba Grammar School on the night.
The teams will meet in the grand final at the Toowoomba Court House on Thursday, August 23 and will be judged by Justice Robert Gotterson AO, Judge Alexander HornemanWren SC and USQ Head of Law and Justice Professor Reid Mortensen.
The annual contest gives high-school legal studies students the chance to extend their learning by experiencing courtroom advocacy and how to develop and deliver legal arguments within a court environment.
A record 33 teams participated in the competition with schools from Toowoomba, Warwick, Stanthorpe, Kingaroy, Brisbane, Springfield and Ipswich.
Students have received mentoring from USQ’s law lecturers and from legal professionals in the community.
Each barrister in the grand final winning team will receive a full-year scholarship to study law at USQ, with the runners up to each receive a half-year scholarship.