From: The Royal Gazette

Winners: The team that won the Hector Barcilon Memorial Moot. From the left are; Justin Williams, vice president of the Bar Association, Shavonna Simpson, Celia Tuzo, Jahkeel Quallo and Chief Justice Ian Kawaley.

Bermudian law students tested their skills in front of the Chief Justice and other top lawyers during an event in memory of late Puisne Judge Hector Barcilon.

The students argued a hypothetical civil case about a child who was injured when she rode her bike onto a government construction site run by a company that had gone into liquidation.

The question, set by lawyer Narinder Hargun of Conyers, Dill and Pearman, asked the students to decide whether the government should be found liable. The team for the appellant won the prize at the event — known as a moot due to their advocacy abilities such as oral skills and legal clarity, according to a Bermuda Bar Council press release.

The winning team consisted of Jahkeel Quallo, a final year student at the University of Buckingham, England, Celia Tuzo, a graduate from the University of Kent law course in England, and Shavonna Simpson, who also completed her studies at the University of Kent this year.

The team for the respondents won the actual point of law that was being decided, however. That team consisted of Keivon Simons, Roger Moniz, T’Deana Spencer and Stacee Smith.

The moot took place at Supreme Court Three on July 23. The judging panel consisted of Chief Justice Ian Kawaley, Attorney General and Minister of Justice Kim Wilson, and Bermuda Bar Association president Delroy Duncan.

The participants ranged from first year law students to those who have almost finished their legal practice and Bar vocational courses and are looking for pupilages. Part of the idea behind the event is to give them a chance to hone their skills and impress prospective employers.

The first Hector Barcilon Memorial Moot was held in 1990 in memory of a man who served in Bermuda as Solicitor General and then Puisne Judge in the 1950s and 60s. He also served on the Law Reform Committee, the Bermuda Bar Council, the English Speaking Union and was the Island’s first Rent Commissioner. He died in 1988.

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