8th KIIT Mock Trial Competition (KMTC) 2026, Bhubaneswar (Total Prize Pool Rs 2,15,000)

Established in 2007, KIIT School of Law (KSOL) is the law faculty of KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, a university deemed under Section 3 of the UGC Act, 1956. The School combines classroom teaching with experiential learning through moot courts, legal aid, ADR training and internships, and has been recognised with the SILF-MILAT Legal Education Innovation Award. Its teams have won the 29th, 33rd and 37th BCI National Moot Court Competitions, and the School reports over 30 academic partnerships and international collaborations.

The Trial and Appellate Advocacy Society (TAAS) of KIIT School of Law is a student-led society supported by faculty members, guided by Faculty Convenor Dr. Swati Mohapatra and Faculty Co-Convenor Dr. Sonali Swetapadma. TAAS runs workshops, mock trials, debates, case presentations and national-level competitions that simulate courtroom proceedings, and has so far conducted six intra mock trial competitions and hosted seven national mock trial competitions.

The KIIT Mock Trial Competition (KMTC) is the flagship event of TAAS and has run since 2015. The 8th edition will be held in offline format at KIIT School of Law, Bhubaneswar, from 30 October to 1 November 2026, and carries the tag line Evidence. Argument. Verdict.

The competition is designed around a simulated criminal trial and asks participants to build and defend a case in a courtroom setting, testing procedural law, legal research, examination and cross-examination of witnesses, handling of evidence, memorial drafting and oral advocacy.

The 8th KMTC proposition is anchored in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 read alongside the wider framework of Indian criminal law. It places participants in a criminal justice setting where the evidence is uncertain, witnesses are under scrutiny and the line between legitimate business activity and organised crime is blurred, raising questions of possession, conscious knowledge and chain of custody against a backdrop of financial trails designed to look clean.

Participants will be tested on narcotics law, evidentiary standards and the general principles of criminal liability including conspiracy, abetment and vicarious responsibility, alongside mens rea, burden of proof, presumptions under special statutes, procedural compliance, admissibility and appreciation of evidence, and the constitutional safeguards available to an accused. The proposition was released on 7 September 2026.

• Open to students pursuing a three-year or five-year LL.B. programme in the current academic year at any institution recognised by the Bar Council of India.
• Each team must consist of exactly three members: two Speakers and one Researcher.
• Witnesses will be provided by the Organising Committee.
• Teams must upload a scanned bona fide certificate or a letter of authorisation issued by the head of the institution during online registration, or carry a hard copy to offline registration. Participants without a bona fide certificate will not be allowed to participate.

• Participation is restricted to the first 30 teams that confirm and complete their participation formalities, on a first-come first-served basis.
• A maximum of two teams per institution may take part.
• Dress code: standard advocates' attire, that is a white shirt, black trousers and a black coat.
• The competition is conducted in English; use of a vernacular language during proceedings is permitted only at the discretion of the presiding judges.
• Team anonymity: teams must not disclose their identity, institution or city to the judges at any stage, and disclosure leads to immediate disqualification.
• Anti-scouting: teams may not observe the oral rounds of any other participating team, and scouting leads to immediate disqualification.
• Roles as prosecution or defence are assigned through a draw of lots held before each round.

Registration is completed through the official Google Form linked below. Each team, comprising Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and the Researcher, must pay a cumulative team registration fee of Rs 6,000 by bank transfer to the account named in the form, and upload a screenshot of the payment along with the team's documents. The registration fee is non-refundable. The last date for online registration is 30 September 2026.

The Organising Committee has reserved the right to extend the registration and memorial submission deadlines if required.

• 30 October 2026: Researcher's Test, draw of lots and exchange of memorials.
• 31 October 2026: Preliminary Rounds and Quarter-Finals.
• 1 November 2026: Semi-Finals, Finals and Valedictory Ceremony.