Advocacy in the Classroom

FLS Moot

It is the capstone of the first year mandatory Fundamental Legal Skills course. Throughout the course first year law students examine the Canadian Legal System and learn how to research the law. The moots allow students to practice their oral advocacy skills. Teams consist of four students, two crown counsel and two defence counsel. Factums are prepared prior to the moots. Students then argue their case in front of a trio of volunteer judges. Judges are members from the TRU Faculty of Law and the Kamloops Bar Association. After the judges’ ruling students receive feedback on their substantive mastery of the law in addition to their courtroom presence.

Dispute Resolution 3

Third-year law students take an obligatory Dispute Resolution course which focuses on trial advocacy and provides an overview of the adjudicative decision-making process. Students engage with an actual criminal case, build the case through identification of theory and theme, and practice their courtroom skills while receiving feedback as they go.

Advanced Advocacy

In Advanced Advocacy students learn about the role and responsibilities of an advocate and their limits and obligations. Students expand their perspective of the role of the student-advocate, and obtain advanced knowledge upon which to base the development of practical skills throughout a career in practice. Past classes have included a practical component where students work with a fictional case and participate in a mock trial.

Civil Procedure

Civil Procedure is a mandatory course that provides a detailed examination of issues which arise in the progress of a civil action from first meeting through to judgement in the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Interprovincial and international aspects of the civil litigation process are also considered. Past classes have included practical components such as drafting and revising pleadings, and observing and discussing a civil proceeding in BC Supreme Court.

Civil Liberties and the Charter

Civil Liberties and the Charter allows students to critically engage with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and its associated jurisprudence. Students will assess the role of courts in the context of judicial review, examine the interpretive methods applied to the Charter, and review the evolution of many of the Charter’s core substantive rights and remedies. Topics include: freedom of expression, freedom of religion, democratic rights and equality. Past classes have included a practical component where students participated in a Charter moot.

Community Legal Clinic

Advocacy and dispute resolution opportunities are available through the Thompson Rivers University Community Legal Clinic.