Life at Duke Law

All first-year students compete in the Hardt Moot Court competition, where they argue an appellate brief and endure rigorous questioning by the judges (second- and third-year students). Those who score highest in this competition, or in the Dean’s Cup competition, are invited to join the prestigious student-run Moot Court Board. This opens the door to many opportunities: Within the law school, the Board assists the legal research and writing instructors in teaching appellate advocacy and organizes and runs the Moot Court competitions. Joining the Moot Court Board also affords students the opportunity to compete in interscholastic moot court competitions around the country, where topics include intellectual property, products liability, securities, labor, and constitutional law.

Moot Court is valuable professional training wherein students think on their feet and hone their speaking, advocacy, and legal analysis skills.

The Moot Court Board is composed of second-year and third-year law students chosen on the basis of their performance in intramural moot court competition. The Board organizes and conducts the Law School's annual Hardt Cup and Dean's Cup intramural competitions and selects Duke Law's representatives to the Philip C. Jessup International Law competition. Members of the Board regularly compete in national interscholastic moot court competitions.

• To learn who we are and what we do, check out the General Info and Membership pages.
• If you are a 1L interested in joining the Moot Court Board, read about the Hardt Cup and Jessup Cup.
• If you are a 2L or 3L interested in joining the Moot Court Board, read about the Dean's Cup and the Jessup Cup.
• For information on where members of the Moot Court Board compete, see our Competitions page.
• Other useful resources can be found on our Resources page.