If anyone is interested, I make an appearance on page 126 of the January 2008 issue of Esquire Indonesia. Unfortunately, the website remains 'under construction', so you might have to just buy the magazine (35,000 Rupiah) or duck into somewhere and bust open the plastic cover for a free read!
It is just me being me, and giving my take on legal education in Indonesia through participation in mooting competitions. Does someone interviewing me for an article in Esquire magazine mean that I am moving up in the world?
I think it is worth a read!
Showing posts with label Mooting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mooting. Show all posts
01 January 2008
16 September 2007
Moot Courts & Visions for the Future
One of the things I seem to do regularly is to provide seminars and work shops on international law, legal writing, oral advocacy, and much of this is achieved through running moot court activities...Yet, when it is all said and done I am always amazed at how little interest there is in mooting - from academia and the profession alike!
For me it has always seemed so simple...mooting teaches you practical skills that allow you to hit the ground running straight after graduation and surely this must be a skill that is highly sort after by employers. Unfortunately, this turns out to rarely be the case and the number of visionary academics and professionals in this field appear to be lesser rather than greater in number...
In brief it is obvious that participating in a moot court activity allows you to learn team work and team leadership skills, focused research skills, writing skills, and advocacy skills, all of which are of immediate benefit in a professional situation!
Why moot? The answer is pretty simple if you are a law student...if you are any good at it an you get team that is good at it,then victories in the various local competitions are likely to take you around the world to participate in international competitions. This is another factor in why law firms should be a little less short-sighted in this regard...a successful law moot graduate is likely to have legal and corporate contacts all over the world. So, if you are a law firm looking to expand your international practice then an investment in a law mot graduate may just reap long-term returns far out-weighing any initial recruitment investment that you may have made...
I guess the moral of the story is that only having participated in a moot court competition can you fully appreciate the benefits that can be gained...to this end therefore mooting must become a compulsory undergraduate subject for all law students - no ifs, no buts, and no maybes...
The convergence on international law and mooting in the Indonesian context is a driving force behind moves to make mooting a greater part of the academic curriculum. It is also a motivating force in moves to see that students who participate in moot court competitions such as the Philip C Jessup International Law Moot Competition or the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Competition garner recognition in the form of these efforts are credited as part of their legal studies program. In essence they gain subject credits for their participation - a bold move in Indonesia...This fact that Indonesia has limited numbers of international lawyers with wide-ranging practical experience is a more recent realization for Indonesia and this realization is another reason that there has been a renewed interest in providing these types of practical advocacy skills at the university level...
Only time will tell but the future looks hopeful...
For me it has always seemed so simple...mooting teaches you practical skills that allow you to hit the ground running straight after graduation and surely this must be a skill that is highly sort after by employers. Unfortunately, this turns out to rarely be the case and the number of visionary academics and professionals in this field appear to be lesser rather than greater in number...
In brief it is obvious that participating in a moot court activity allows you to learn team work and team leadership skills, focused research skills, writing skills, and advocacy skills, all of which are of immediate benefit in a professional situation!
Why moot? The answer is pretty simple if you are a law student...if you are any good at it an you get team that is good at it,then victories in the various local competitions are likely to take you around the world to participate in international competitions. This is another factor in why law firms should be a little less short-sighted in this regard...a successful law moot graduate is likely to have legal and corporate contacts all over the world. So, if you are a law firm looking to expand your international practice then an investment in a law mot graduate may just reap long-term returns far out-weighing any initial recruitment investment that you may have made...
I guess the moral of the story is that only having participated in a moot court competition can you fully appreciate the benefits that can be gained...to this end therefore mooting must become a compulsory undergraduate subject for all law students - no ifs, no buts, and no maybes...
The convergence on international law and mooting in the Indonesian context is a driving force behind moves to make mooting a greater part of the academic curriculum. It is also a motivating force in moves to see that students who participate in moot court competitions such as the Philip C Jessup International Law Moot Competition or the Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Competition garner recognition in the form of these efforts are credited as part of their legal studies program. In essence they gain subject credits for their participation - a bold move in Indonesia...This fact that Indonesia has limited numbers of international lawyers with wide-ranging practical experience is a more recent realization for Indonesia and this realization is another reason that there has been a renewed interest in providing these types of practical advocacy skills at the university level...
Only time will tell but the future looks hopeful...
07 September 2007
Japan
Well, I had never been to Japan before so I had been looking forward to going...this was even more so the case because someone else was picking up the majority of the tab (airfares, accommodation, and a not so generous per diem as it turns out)...
The first thing that struck me was that it was summer in Japan and it was hot! Somewhere between 36 and 40 degrees Celsius which was actually nice as it reminded me a little of my summers in Australia. It was hot and dry which is always a nice contrast to the hot and humid weather of Indonesia. I was only there for 4 days and having to work there was not enough time to get out of Tokyo and see the rest of what is said to be a fantastic tourist destination...I would have loved to have had the time to get down to Kyoto and check out the Geisha (the ride down on the bullet train might have been fum as well)...I will definitely get back to Japan someday (it is one of the countries on my list of 1000 things to do before I kick the bucket!!!)...
Japan is comparatively expensive for someone on an Indonesian salary...I understand that with a Japanese salary your standard of living is likely to be much better. But all the same, I guess I have just been spoilt with the comparatively cheap prices that are always available in Indonesia if you want to shop around!
The other point of note is that Japanese obviously like to drink...It was kind of bizarre to walk around the streets late at night and see blokes in business suits sleeping on the footpath using their briefcases for a pillow obviously having staggered out of the bar that they are asleep in front of...Also surprising, although I probably should not be, was the number of African blokes working as touts to the girlie bars...
You gotta love Japanese hotels...24 hour porn channels and access only requires you to buy a card from a vending machine! 1000 yen a card but it only lasts for a short while, so I am told :)...
It was nice to go somewhere where there is a functioning, clean, and efficient public transportation system, particularly the subway which sort of gets you to wherever you want or need to be...Get a map though and learn your way!
The airport, at least the Narita airport, is a long way from Tokyo 70kms on an expressway...but there are public buses that get you to most places in Tokyo for about 3000 yen or the train for about 1900 yen...the bus is easier for first timers if you are unfamiliar with the subway system...
All in all it was a fun 4 days!
The first thing that struck me was that it was summer in Japan and it was hot! Somewhere between 36 and 40 degrees Celsius which was actually nice as it reminded me a little of my summers in Australia. It was hot and dry which is always a nice contrast to the hot and humid weather of Indonesia. I was only there for 4 days and having to work there was not enough time to get out of Tokyo and see the rest of what is said to be a fantastic tourist destination...I would have loved to have had the time to get down to Kyoto and check out the Geisha (the ride down on the bullet train might have been fum as well)...I will definitely get back to Japan someday (it is one of the countries on my list of 1000 things to do before I kick the bucket!!!)...
Japan is comparatively expensive for someone on an Indonesian salary...I understand that with a Japanese salary your standard of living is likely to be much better. But all the same, I guess I have just been spoilt with the comparatively cheap prices that are always available in Indonesia if you want to shop around!
The other point of note is that Japanese obviously like to drink...It was kind of bizarre to walk around the streets late at night and see blokes in business suits sleeping on the footpath using their briefcases for a pillow obviously having staggered out of the bar that they are asleep in front of...Also surprising, although I probably should not be, was the number of African blokes working as touts to the girlie bars...
You gotta love Japanese hotels...24 hour porn channels and access only requires you to buy a card from a vending machine! 1000 yen a card but it only lasts for a short while, so I am told :)...
It was nice to go somewhere where there is a functioning, clean, and efficient public transportation system, particularly the subway which sort of gets you to wherever you want or need to be...Get a map though and learn your way!
The airport, at least the Narita airport, is a long way from Tokyo 70kms on an expressway...but there are public buses that get you to most places in Tokyo for about 3000 yen or the train for about 1900 yen...the bus is easier for first timers if you are unfamiliar with the subway system...
All in all it was a fun 4 days!
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