Students from seven Asia-Pacific countries are participating at the International Moot Court competition at Ho Chi Minh City that began Monday.

Eighteen teams will argue different sides of the conflict between the rights of rescue boats and the legal rights of agencies preserving underwater cultural heritages at the Moot 2009 competition that will last until Thursday.

Vietnam is fielding two teams to the fourth edition of this competition – the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam in Hanoi and HCMC University of Law, which is also organizing the conteset.

Simulated court proceedings have been carried out as an extracurricular activity at many law schools, and usually include drafting briefs and presenting oral arguments.

The competition does not involve actual testimony by witnesses or the presentation of evidence. It focuses solely on applying the law to a common set of assumptions that the competitors are informed of.

Source: Tuoi Tre