14-01-2012 @ 13:39

This week 9th-13th January 2012 was a pretty intense week!

I had three applications to make:

1) Defense application to exclude bad character evidence (criminal)

2) Responding to an application for summary judgment (civil)

3) Application for a summary judgment (civil, in front of a practising barrister)

These applications are interim applications, which basically means applying for decisions on a case before the case goes to trial. Parties may wish to include or exclude evidence, which must be decided before proceeding to trial (criminal application). Or one party may wish to apply for a judgment on a claim before going to trial because on the facts of the case (it is straightforward, and the opposing party would not succeed anyway) the claim can be decided without going to trial.

The first two applications were in front of my tutors. I had to be suited and booted, present my skeleton argument and use my bundle of documents (with all the witness statements and exhibits of evidence) in order to PERSUADE the judge (my tutor) to decide in my favour. This was such a good exercise for my advocacy skills.

I must admit that I have been struggling with my advocacy, the nerves do get the better of me. But my tutor has assured me that you can be taught how to be a good advocate, and this course is the best place to make all the mistakes and improve. 

In my first two applications I had to make persuasive submissions to show the judge that my version of the case is the more believable version. It was fun! However at the time I did stumble on referring to the evidence while keeping eye contact with the judge. The judge wants to have a conversation with you, and to make your case more persuasive and believable it is best to make your point, refer the judge to the evidence, then put your papers down and make eye contact with the judge and explain to him/her why this point is a valid point. This is easier said than done, and having delivered these applications I can really see how I can significantly improve for next time.

The third application was in front of a practising barrister from a local chambers. He was fantastic. He gave me such constructive feedback, and even gave me an example of where I went wrong and how I should have made the point. 

The course is now hotting up... meaning our theory is marrying into our practical. The emphasis of the course is advocacy, and I am learning more session by session tips to improve my preparation and my performance.

Don't be afraid of making mistakes. Don't be afraid of not being perfect. Be prepared and enjoy having to persuade the judge that you're right!

Until next time, AnitaVeer