The Annual Michael Kirby Contract Law Moot Competition is hosted by Victoria Law School in the College of Law and Justice at Victoria University (VU).

This four-day annual competition is open to teams across Australia. It is one of the largest moot court competitions in Australia, and has been running since 2011. It is Australia’s only Contract Law Moot. Winners of this competition win prize money and usually go on to compete in international mooting competitions.

Mooting is the oldest form of legal training for law advocates. At many universities, mooting competitions can be selected as an elective unit in your undergraduate law degree.

The Kirby Moot demonstrates VU’s strong industry connections. It is a fixture in the legal calendar and has strong support from the County Court of Victoria, members of the Victorian Bar, various law firms and practical legal training institutions. Law professionals are invited to judge the rounds and provide feedback to students.

Kirby Moot competition 2022

We are pleased to announce that the 10th Annual Kirby Contract Law Moot 2022 will run 26–29 September 2022.

This year’s competition will be conducted in-person at Victoria Law School, 295 Queen Street, City Campus. Only two teams per university will be eligible to register.

Read the Kirby Moot 2022 rules.

Download the 2022 Kirby Moot problem.

Download the 2022 Moot clarifications.

Registration: Competitor & Teams

Registration costs $850 incl. GST per team.

Register to compete

Registrations open 1 June to 22 July.

Registration: Volunteer, observer & judge

REGISTER TO JUDGE

REGISTER TO VOLUNTEER/OBSERVE

Registrations and RSVPs:

  • Competitor and team registration open, Wednesday 1 June – Friday 22 July
  • Judge registration open, 1 July – 20 August
  • Volunteer and observer registration open, 1 July – 20 August
  • RSVPs for the cocktail party closes, Friday 9 September.

Moot problem, clarifications and written responses:

  • Release of Moot problem, Monday 4 July
  • Clarification questions submissions close (email [email protected]), Friday 22 July, 11.55pm
  • Memoranda for claimant submissions close (email [email protected]), Friday 12 August, 11.55pm
  • Memoranda for respondent submissions due (respondent submissions can be generically written, email [email protected]), Monday 5 September, 11.59pm
  • Exchange of memoranda, Friday 9 September, 11.59pm.

In-person Moot and events:

  • Oral hearings in Melbourne (VU’s College of Law & Justice, Queen Street, Melbourne), 26–29 September
  • The Annual Michael Kirby Oration Ceremony, Wednesday 28 September, 5.30pm
  • Semi-final 1, semi-final 2 and final, Thursday 29 September
  • Presentations and cocktail party, Thursday 29 September, 7pm.

Oration

Established in 2010, the annual Michael Kirby Justice Oration provides a platform for leaders within our community to share their experiences, deep understanding, knowledge and reflections on issues of justice.

This year, the Michael Kirby Justice Oration will be held on the evening of Wednesday 28 September 2022.

The Honourable Michael Kirby AC CMG will introduce Hon. Dr Barry Jones, AC, FAA.

The Honourable. Dr Barry Jones

Barry Jones has been a teacher, lawyer, academic, writer and politician, a Labor Member of the Victorian Parliament 1972-77 and the Commonwealth Parliament 1977-98. He led the successful campaign to abolish the death penalty.

His book Sleepers, Wake!: Technology and the Future of Work (1982) became an international best seller, read by Deng Xiaoping and Bill Gates.

Australia’s longest-serving Minister for Science 1983-90, he was the first politician to draw attention to the existential challenge of climate change/global warming, and the way that the IT revolution would transform employment and politics. He represented Australia in Paris at UNESCO 1991-95 and the World Heritage Committee 1995-96 and has consulted for the OECD.

The only person elected to four of Australia’s five learned academies, he became a ‘living national treasure’ in 1997 and was made a Companion of the Order of Australia, the nation’s highest award, in 2014.  What Is To Be Done: Political Engagement and Saving the Planet was a bestseller in 2020.  The Penalty is Death, first published in 1968, had a second edition, updated and much expanded, in 2022.

Event sponsors

Past competitions

Congratulations to Bond University for winning the 9th Michael Kirby Contract Law Moot in August 2021. The competition was hosted by Victoria University College of Law & Justice and sponsored by Leo Cussen Centre for Law, the College of Law, Thomson-Reuters, LexisNexis and Oxford University Press.

Olivia Rankine from Bond University was the Best Oralist in the quarter, Semi-final and grand final rounds.

4 young female university students in professional dress, with blue skies and sandstone in the background

Download the award ceremony document.

The 9th Michael Kirby Contract Law Moot Grand Final (password t&DAYGS5).

Oration

In 2021 the Michael Kirby Justice Oration was presented by Emeritus Professor Rosalind Croucher AM, President, Australian Human Rights Commission.

In 2018 the Kirby Moot was held at VU's College of Law & Justice, Queen Street Melbourne.

In 2017, 27 teams from 17 universities competed in the moot.

The 2017 Kirby Moot grand final was held at the County Court, with a panel of judges.

View the 2017 winners.

Contact us

The Kirby Moot will be held at our law facilities at 295 Queen Street, part of Victoria University's City Campus in Melbourne.

For more information contact Sue Pejic, Moot coordinator, by emailing [email protected].