Emory Moot Court team advances in regionals of national competition
The team of Malone Allen 13L, Brad Strickland 13L and Sterling Winchester 13L scored four wins before falling to the University of Georgia. The team’s only other loss prior to semifinals was against a Stetson University School of Law team that eventually went on to win the entire competition. Emory Law beat a Florida Coastal School of Law team to advance to semifinals. Prior to that, Emory had beaten Mercer Law, Ave Maria School of Law and another Stetson team, said Vanessa Lee 13L, the society’s director in chief. Audrey Biggerstaff 13L served as team coach.
“Region Five is considered the most difficult region in the National Moot Court Competition,” Biggerstaff said “The team practiced seven days a week.”
Emory also earned the sixth highest brief score for the competition, based on four major criteria: content, organization, substance and effectiveness.
The brief dealt with qualified immunity and two constitutional questions, Biggerstaff said. The first, whether there is a First Amendment right to record police activity and second, whether the Fourth Amendment prohibits the search of a cell phone incident to an arrest.
"Competing on the national team was a great experience,” Allen said. “It’s an excellent opportunity to argue against some of the best advocates from other schools, while working closely with intelligent and driven Emory Law students on complex constitutional issues.”
“We had a great time in Jacksonville, both competing and enjoying a nice break from classes. And it didn't hurt that we walked away with some hardware,” Allen said.
The competition is co-sponsored by the New York City Bar Association and the American College of Trial Lawyers. Overall, 179 teams from 124 law schools compete in 15 regional competitions. The top two teams in each region advance to the national competition held in at the New York City Bar Association in January.