Advocacy Competitions

Lerners LLP Cup

Appellate advocacy is the process of arguing a case before an appellate court, in which the facts are not in dispute and the focus is on the law.

The Faculty runs an internal appellate advocacy competition called the Lerners LLP Cup. This voluntary competition gives upper-year students the opportunity to argue a hypothetical case before an appellate court. Judges, practicing lawyers and third-year students generously volunteer their time to act as judges for the competition. The top students advance to the final rounds to compete for the Lerners LLP Cup. Doing well in this competition is the gateway to qualifying to represent Western Law in one of several external advocacy competitions.

The Lerners LLP Cup usually takes place in late September. Students sign up, are given the problem, and have a week to prepare their factum. The preliminary rounds take place over the course of a week and the finals are held the following week. Students can compete in English or French or both. The finals are typically judged by judges from the Court of Appeal for Ontario. More detailed information about the competition is contained in the Rules, available from the Administrative Office.

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