Student advocates take home multiple accolades this spring
Stetson University College of Law’s student advocacy teams took home multiple accolades during the spring semester.
Student Kasey Feltner tied as the best oralist at the Andrews Kurth Moot Court National Championship in January in Houston, Texas. This is the second year in a row that a Stetson student has won the best oralist award in this prestigious national championship.
(L-R): Nathan Bruemmer, Dan Kavanaugh, Silvia Amador and Kishantevia Carson.
Stetson’s moot court teams competed over the weekend of March 4-6 to win a regional tournament of the American Bar Association National Appellate Advocacy Competition and win the Best Oralist Award at the South Regional of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. The team of Darnesha Carter, Evan Dix and Jessica Ford was named one of the four co-champions at the regional round of the ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition, earning an invitation to the national finals in April (where the team members were semifinalists). At the South Regional of the Jessup competition, students Lauren Eliopoulos, Anna Kirkpatrick, Nicole Santamaria, Chloe Wells and Julius Matusewicz advanced to the semifinals. For the first time in Stetson history, a Stetson advocate—Eliopoulos—won the Best Oralist Award.
Two of Stetson’s trial teams brought home multiple awards March 17-20. The team of Silvia Amador, Nathan Bruemmer, Kishantevia Carson, and Dan Kavanaugh won the National Ethics Trial Competition at the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, California. The team also won the Most Professional Team Award and Kavanaugh won the Best Advocate, Final Round Award.
Another Stetson trial team of Alexa Cline, Courtney Olivier, Chantay Perry, and Alexis Petrosino advanced to the semifinals and won three individual awards at the American Bar Association National Criminal Justice Trial Competition on March 17-19 in Chicago, Illinois. Petrosino won the Best Opening Statement Award and the Best Direct Examination Award and Olivier won the Best Closing Argument Award.
Stetson’s Vis International Arbitration Moot team, including Jonathan Diamond, Sadiya Hashem, Leon Innerkofler, Taylor Ryan, Brien Squires and Kaelyn Steinkraus won two awards at the 23rd Annual Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot in Vienna, Austria, March 18-24. Stetson won two Honorable Mention Awards—the team won one for the Respondent’s Memorandum and Ryan won one as a Best Oralist. Ryan was in the top 50 of close to 2,000 oralists. Only six of 49 U.S. teams advanced to the top 32 teams, which included Stetson. There were a total of 311 teams competing from 47 countries. The team placed first in the pre-moot in Miami, Florida, on Feb. 27.
Stetson’s Vis team took home multiple awards in Vienna.
A Stetson moot court team won the 31st Annual Dean Jerome Prince Memorial Evidence Moot Court Competition on April 2 at Brooklyn Law School in New York. The team of Brittany Cover, Kristina Hartman, and Jeremy Rill won rounds against teams from the University of Florida, Wayne State, Michigan State, Louisiana State, Georgetown and the University of Tennessee. Stetson’s team also won the award for the Best Brief, and Rill was named Best Oralist, Final Round. Thirty-six teams participated in the competition.
“Once again our students have proved that they have developed the practical skills they will need to be attorneys,” said Professor of Legal Skills and Associate Director of the Center for Excellence in Advocacy Brooke Bowman, moot court advisor at Stetson. “We are proud of our students and Stetson’s continued dedication to preparing our students to be top-notch advocates.”
Stetson’s trial advocacy program is nationally ranked No.1 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Since 1980, Stetson’s advocacy teams have won five international competitions, 66 national championships, and close to 200 awards for best briefs (52 awards), best advocate (138 awards), and most professional (five awards).
Post date: April 29, 2016
Media contact: Kate Bradshaw
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