Shakyra Tonge was named the Best Speaker at the 2024 Fortis Advocatus Speed Mooting Competition, as she and her teammate, Jawan Jackson were the winners of this year’s competition.
The Fortis Advocatus Speed Mooting Competition is organised by the Antigua and Barbuda National Mooting Association annually to give CAPE law students an opportunity to test their persuasive—both in writing and oral arguments, before a panel of legal experts.
Tonge and Jackson faced stiff competition from the two other teams—Danica Garnett and Davisha Bonnie, as well as Kha-Shymma Harris and Tanasia Lawrence—who all presented their cases in the form of a mock trail around this year’s topic of environmental and tort law.
As winners of the competition, Jackson and Tonge were awarded $1,000 sponsored by members of the legal fraternity, a sponsored package by Flow, and an eco-tour sponsored by Adventure Antigua Tours.
The three judges, in delivering their final remarks, praised the students for their immaculate reliance on the law and facts to present their individual cases, and they gave some advice for the students to be more confident in their work and themselves.
“You never stop learning, and you are at the very beginning in your time of the practice of law, and one of the things that you have to understand is that sometimes, there is not a definite answer to a particular issue, but your success in court will depend, on a large part, on how you present what you have before you,” E Ann Henry KC said.
Justice Nicola Byer praised the Mooting Association for its work to sharpen the budding skills of young people.
“These young people showed their fortitude, their hard work and…I think that they will all benefit from [the competition]; you can never not benefit from public speaking and learning how to speak to persons in this environment,” Justice Byer commented.
Meanwhile, the winning team—Tonge and Jackson—gave their assessment of their months of hard work which gave rise to their success.
“Being in front of the judges was a bit intimidating at first, but as I continued my argument, I was more stress-free and relieved,” Best Mooting Speaker Shakyra Tonge said.
“We put in many, many sleepless nights, and many, many arguments, but we argued as a team and here we are,” Jackson remarked.
Jackson and Tonge have both expressed their interest in continuing to pursue a career in the field of law.
