moot

Moot

An issue presenting no real controversy.

Moot refers to a subject for academic argument. It is an abstract question that does not arise from existing facts or rights.

Moot court is a cocurricular or extracurricular activity in law school where students have the opportunity to write briefs and present oral arguments on hypothetical cases.

West's Encyclopedia of American Law, edition 2. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

moot

adj. 1) unsettled, open to argument, or debatable, specifically about a legal question which has not been determined by any decision of any court. 2) an issue only of academic interest. (See: moot point, moot court)

Copyright © 1981-2005 by Gerald N. Hill and Kathleen T. Hill. All Right reserved.

moot

an old English word for an assembly, but now the word is used only

1 as a noun to describe a legal argument not in a court of law, usually held for the purpose of legal education based on a tradition established in the English Inns of Court.

2 as an adjective, a point of law is often said to be moot if, raised in a litigation, the point does not any longer affect the decision in the case before the court.

Collins Dictionary of Law © W.J. Stewart, 2006

MOOT, English law. A term used in the inns of court, signifying the exercise of arguing imaginary cases, which young barristers and students used to perform at certain times, the better to be enabled by this practice to defend their clients cases. A moot question is one which has not been decided.

A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States. By John Bouvier. Published 1856.