Rubric teardown
“What exactly are the judges rewarding this year?”
What they hand inA one-page plan mapped to the marking criteria.
Before the entry startsProgrammes / Law, Debate & Communication
Competition · Law, Debate & Communication
The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors
8-week live online moot court competition for Grades 8–12, mentored by Harvard student mentors, ending in a judged knockout tournament. The Moot Court Championship is an 8-week live online competition for high-school students in grades 8–12, mentored by Harvard student mentors. Over four weeks of build, competitors master legal research, writing, oral advocacy and strategy across IP, tort, contract, constitutional law and AI ethics; over four weeks of competition they submit written memorials and argue knockout rounds — preliminaries, Round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and a grand finale — before a senior judge and mentor panel. Every student receives a Harvard co-signed certificate, with individual distinctions for Best Speaker and Best Memorial.
Length56 days
Cohort sizeSmall live cohort
EligibilityGrades 8–12 (13–17)
Live sessionsLive session times confirmed on registration · live on Zoom
What your child will actually do
Live, mentor-led sessions - worked problems and real output, not lectures.
1
Understand what judges reward
A live briefing on the The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors rubric, so your child knows what a winning entry looks like before starting.
2
Research and build the entry
Structured work across 56 days, with checkpoints rather than a last-minute scramble.
3
Submit and get judged
Entries are assessed by the organising panel, with feedback and rankings returned to every participant.
Skills your child will gain
Named, practised skills - grouped the way universities read them, tied to how each is used in this competition.
Thinking & analysis
How your child breaks a problem down before touching it.
- Statutory reading
Practised on live problems in every round - never taught as theory.
Communication
Writing and speaking so an adult expert takes them seriously.
- Cross-examination
Rehearsed in front of a mentor and peers, then corrected on the spot.
- Argument under scrutiny
Written up each week and marked the way a specialist reader would mark it.
Building & doing
The hands-on craft that turns an idea into a finished artefact.
- Editing ruthlessly
Used directly on the work your child hands in across 56 days.
Working with people
Deadlines, teams, feedback - the habits universities and employers notice.
- Case briefs
Built through real deadlines and written mentor feedback.
- Working to a hard deadline
Practised in small-team work with students your child has never met.
- Handling results, win or lose
Held to a professional standard - the brief, the deadline, the follow-up.
Projects they finish with
Sample briefs from recent cohorts - the actual work that comes out of the programme, not a syllabus.
The competition entry itself
“Can your child produce law, debate & communication work that stands up to outside judging?”
What they hand inA submitted entry - essay, case or presentation - kept for the portfolio.
56 daysPost-result reflection
“What did the judges' feedback reveal to fix next time?”
What they hand inJudge feedback plus a written reflection worth quoting in interviews.
After resultsA judged entry with a result attached
A future-lawyer profile built on argument quality rather than debate trophies alone. By the end of The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors, the aim is simple: a written brief or mooting record, ideally with a competition placement.
What you end up holding
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
- A line that needs no explaining on a form
What they'll take away
Certificate of ParticipationJudging feedback and rankingAwards for top entriesA submission to show universities
How this strengthens their university profile
The point isn't the certificate. It's the line a family can honestly write afterwards - and the artefact sitting behind it.
Before
"My child is interested in law, debate & communication."
Nothing an admissions officer can check.
After The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors
"My child completed The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors and finished a judged entry with a result attached."
A line with an artefact behind it.
Why this competition counts
External validation. A competition is judged by someone other than us, which is exactly why admissions officers weigh it - a rank or an award is a third party saying the work was good.
A future-lawyer profile built on argument quality rather than debate trophies alone.
What a university can verify
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
- A line that needs no explaining on a form
- A rank, award or honourable mention
- A submitted essay or case entry
Upcoming cohorts
Dates for the next intake are being confirmed - the programme page has the latest.
Session times shown in Dubai time (GMT+4) with US Eastern alongside. Fees are correct at time of publishing - confirm on the programme page.
Live mentors, every single session
The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors is taught live by mentors from leading universities and partner organisations - never pre-recorded. Small cohorts mean your child is spoken to by name, not counted in an audience.
Parents usually ask
Is my child the right age for this?
It is designed for Grades 8–12. No prior background is assumed - mentors calibrate to the cohort in the first session.
How much time does it take?
56 days in total, with live sessions live session times confirmed on registration plus light preparation in between. It is built to sit alongside school.
What if we miss a session?
Tell the team in advance and they will share the materials and arrange a catch-up so your child rejoins without falling behind.
How do we pay and confirm a place?
Places are confirmed on the The Moot Court Championship by Harvard Student Mentors application page. Fees shown here are correct at time of publishing - always confirm on the programme page before paying.
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USD 60dates on request