Kawaskimhon: The Aboriginal Rights Moot

The Kawaskimhon ("Speaking with Knowledge") Aboriginal Rights Moot is a forum wherein issues regarding Aboriginal rights are debated by aboriginal and non-aboriginal students from across Canada.  Kawaskimhon is a great opportunity for students to speak to issues of aboriginal rights and is an integral part of the First Nations Legal Studies program at UBC.

A different law school hosts Kawaskimhon each year.  Participants include students from most Canadian law schools (in teams of 2 to 4 students) and facilitators (faculty advisors, community members, elders) from across the country. The moot problem is assigned by the host institution in December or early January, and the factums are due six to eight weeks after the problem is assigned.  The moot itself is held in early March, over the course of two days.  On the first day participants present oral arguments based on submitted written factums.  At the end of the first day, the host law school prepares a cultural night (which usually includes a banquet, singers and dancers, etc).  Kawaskimhon participants are expected to work toward reaching consensus on the mooted problems by the end of the second day.  Previous moots have addressed such issues as band membership rights, territorial overlaps, the effects of hydro projects, Métis rights and aboriginal heritage.

Students are assessed a pass/fail mark based on their research, written factums and oral presentations at Kawaskimhon.
The First Nations Legal Studies Academic and Associate Directors have traditionally been faculty advisors to the students, and lawyers from the firm Mandell Pinder have sponsored and coached the UBC team.