DISPUTE RESOLUTION BOARD ARE CHAMPIONS, AGAIN!
Stetson Dispute Resolution Board are champions for the second week in a row. Yes, we mean champions – plural with an “s.”
Thursday night, Lexie Sharpe, team captain, and first-time Stetson competitor, Erica Weaver, competed in the 4th Annual Chicago Bar Association Transactional Negotiation Competition. After three preliminary rounds, Lexie and Erica advanced to semifinals, then to finals, and after three days of competition, the team WON the competition! The team was coached by DR alumna, Valeria Villaverde, Esquire. This was Stetson’s second time competing at the Chicago Bar Association Transactional Negotiation Competition, last year finishing as finalists.
Trial Team and Moot Court graciously helped us out this weekend by swapping rooms with the CBA team to allow them to compete in Courtroom 203! We love it when Stetson’s Advocacy Boards work together and win together!
[L-R] Erica and Lexie
A bit earlier Thursday, at 3:50 a.m., the Merhige team arrived at Tampa International Airport to board their 6:00 a.m. flight to Richmond, Virginia. The Robert R. Merhige, Jr. National Environmental Negotiation Competition is a longstanding environmental negotiation competition hosted by the University of Richmond Law School, which saw a four-year hiatus following the pandemic. Stetson was very excited to see this competition return last spring, and this year was our first time back since 2020.
The 2026 fact pattern had 16 teams across the nation negotiate an 8-million gallon per day water use agreement between an AI company and the government, which included negotiations on the water rates, environmental impacts, and conservation efforts. After two preliminary rounds, BOTH Stetson teams advanced to quarterfinals – Team Kaine, Dominique Palka and Ethan Garcia, and Team Wu, Mckenzie Colavecchio, team captain, and Erika Leeper. Mckenzie and Erika were first-time competitors and advanced out of the preliminaries as the No. 1 seed!
Surprisingly, Team Kaine and Team Wu received opposite sides for the quarterfinal rounds, so after a small celebratory dinner in the hotel room, the team split off for the night. The next day, Team Kaine did not shake that winning feeling – they advanced to semifinals, to finals, and for the first time since 2014, Stetson WON the Robert R. Merhige, Jr. National Environmental Negotiation Competition! We are also ecstatic that Team Wu won the “Best Dressed” superlative for the competition! The team was coached by DR alumna, Mary Samarkos, Esq. and Professor Sy-Woei Hao.
Like the CBA team, the Merhige team extends a big thanks to the Moot Court members that volunteered their time to help scrimmage – what a fun crossover!
[L-R] Professor Hao, Mckenzie, Ethan, Dominique, Erika, Coach Mary
Stetson Dispute Resolution Board is now FIVE for FIVE in competition wins these past two weekends. We are so proud of all the competitors, coaches, and the entire DR Board!
Go Stetson!