APIIT Law School emerge champions at the National Moot Court Competition
Newly appointed Attorney General Palitha Fernando, who was one of the Judges of the competition at the time said: “The manner in which the APIIT Team answered the questions fired at them in quick succession was amazing. I don’t think even lawyers can produce such intelligent answers while being on their feet.” Dinusha (20) voiced her opinion, “We did an excellent job and I am really proud of our team. We were able to exceed expectations and set a benchmark of the highest order for future APIIT mooters. It would have been evident to any independent observer present on the day of the finals, that APIIT Law School was excellent in their oral deliveries...”
Each team consisted of three members: two counsel and one researcher. Participants were required to submit two memorials; one for the prosecution and one on behalf of the defence. The problem was a fictitious case. There were three teams participating in the National Rounds, namely APIIT Law School, Royal Institute and the Colombo Law Faculty. The APIIT Law School team comprised of Dinusha Weerawardane and Nadeesha Mendis as counsel, and Achini Ranasinghe as researcher. The team was coached by Mrs. Marini De Livera, Senior Lecturer of APIIT Law School a highly experienced human rights and women’s rights advocate with experience in Sri Lanka, Seychelles and the UK.
It was the first mooting experience of these talented three young students. Countless days and sleepless nights were spent on preparing the memorials. APIIT Law School breezed on into the finals against Colombo Law Fa c u l t y. Nadeesha ( 22) said, “This moot competition landed right in the middle of my banking exams so it was really hectic, but it was a very enlightening experience because we became experts in the field of IHL (International Humanitarian Law) in less than 2 months.
These three budding lawyers were seen to be brimming with confidence, dressed up in professional attire and carrying a heavy pile of legal books during the days of the Moot Competition. Achini (22) had this to say, “I think we borrowed half the library. We definitely read all the ‘very-latest’ IHL-related books which were availa- ble in our Library. The Staffordshire University online database was also very useful. Our librarian, Ms. Ruwandi was extremely helpful and our Programme Leader ordered all the extra books we needed. We are really grateful to all our lecturers and staff at APIIT who supported us in every possible way...”
It was a tiring but very educative experience for the APIIT mooters and one that will definitely be counted as a landmark in the students’ professional development. Mooting is a vital part of APIIT’s Law teaching programme because the Law School believes that it is confidence, poise and oral communication that will help their graduates to stand out when they enter the job market.
APIIT Law School offers a comprehensive Internal British Degree in Law awarded by Staffordshire University at its dedicated campus with state- of- the- art facilities, including the unique Moot Court. Surely, it’s more than a degree that you will receive at APIIT Law School! Students wishing to experience the APIIT Advantage and register for the next intake in January 2012, are advised to contact Senani on 0117675105, Ishani 0112675106 or visit us at Union Place, Colombo 2 to get a private tour of the Law School and meet a lecturer from the experienced and committed lecture panel.