BPP Advocate of the Year 2021/22 Competition

The BPP Advocate of the Year Moot is a near one of a kind moot within the United Kingdom. Unlike most moots which concern points of law or appeal, the BPP moot features teams taking part in the other part of advocacy, Cross-Examinations and Examinations in Chief. With actual actors playing the part of clients, witnesses, defendants and victims, and trained legal professionals taking the part of the judges, the BPP moot gives a unique insight into the world of advocacy for budding advocates. 

This year being the first year that the University of Aberdeen Mooting Society has submitted students to the BPP Moot, Fiona Lindenbach, a 1st Year Accelerated LL.B. student succeeded in beating out 50 other mooters to take a place in the top 20 mooters. While she missed out on reaching the Grand Finals (top 16 mooters), she is on the reserve list and so should one of the Grand Finalist mooters be unable to compete, Fiona will have the opportunity to test her advocacy skills before the Old Bailey, the Central Criminal Court in London. We wish her all the best!

Here's what Fiona had to say about her participation in the Moot:

Fiona Lindenbach, 1st Year Accelerated LL.B. (Aberd)

Hello, my name is Fiona. I have a diploma and a degree in Finance, both of which I received from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology in Canada. Throughout my university career, each term I was on the Dean’s Honour Roll. 

​The BPP Advocate of the Year was honestly so much fun because I was able to showcase my people skills through interacting with my client and through conducting a Cross-Examination. Would definitely 10/10 recommend it to everyone!

The Judge described Fiona's pre-trial Conference as "impressive" with her "introduction being particularly brilliant and developed a rapport with the client easily. Establishing that rapport is so key to be able to give your client the advice that you would need to from a professional point of view need to give them.” With regards to Fiona's Cross-Examination, the Judge remarked that, "I noticed something that you did which is quite advanced when it comes to cross examination, which is that you departed intentionally from asking a leading question to asking a non-leading question because the answer could not have ever led you somewhere you didn’t want you to, which is why it was a really tactically sound thing to do.”

​If you would like to get involved with the BPP Advocate of the Year Moot and represent the University of Aberdeen, or other external moots, follow us on social media to receive regular updates!