While exhibiting excellence in the classroom throughout their three years of law school is important to the legal profession, another vital component of training to become a lawyer is writing, researching and defending an argument.Last week, a number of Regent University School of Law students were given the opportunity to exhibit their speaking and reasoning skills at three different Moot Court competitions in Virginia and New York.
"I continue to be amazed at the skill, preparation and success of our moot court teams. They excel in every aspect of their competitions," said Jeffrey Brauch, dean of Regent Law. "I am deeply proud of our students and their faculty coaches—and I praise God for their success."
Saturday, Feb. 8, Regent Law assistant professor Tessa Dysart led her team of 3L students, Andrew Stevener, Chelsea Schlittenhart and Drew Cziok (pictured above) through the 2014 National Religious Freedom Moot Court Competition. The team finished in second place overall in the competition hosted by George Washington University, in Washington, D.C.
"It's always exciting to see students succeed because you know how many hours they put into preparing for the competition—and I think that's really one thing that that makes our team stand out," said Dysart. "It also continues to show what an excellent program of legal education that we offer at Regent, and it gives us a great name as we go out and interact with other students and the judges."
Along with placing in the ranks ahead of big-name schools such as Georgetown University, New York Law School and Howard University, Schlittenhart was also awarded the title of "Best Oralist" for the entire competition.
"I am so thankful to have received the award, and excited that I had another opportunity to show off the quality of Regent's training," said Schlittenhart. "The truth is that any oralist is only as good as the rest of her team—Drew and Andrew played just as much of a role in the win as I did."
From Monday, Feb. 10 to Wednesday, Feb. 12, Regent students also competed in the National Moot Court Competition in New York City. Third year law students Sharon Kerk and Joshua Smith advanced to the top 16 in the competition, from 194 teams that entered the competition at the regional level. Kerk and Smith were led by Michael Hernandez, professor in the School of Law.
Hernandez explained that the importance of the competition lies within the ability to make good contacts and enhance the reputation of the caliber of legal education Regent has to offer.
"The team did an outstanding job, they performed with excellence—even in the round we lost, the judges commented on how persuasive and impenetrable our arguments were," said Hernandez. "It was a close round against our competition, and they did really well."
The national competition put Regent up against law schools such as Wake Forrest University, Texas Tech University and the University of Memphis.
Regent's team also participated in the College of William & Mary's 43rd Spong Tournament from Friday, Feb. 14 to Saturday, Feb. 15. Associate professor Kathleen McKee led second-year law students Danielle Bianculli, Stephen Cady, and Jeffrey Pommerenck. The team advanced to the top eight in the competition.
"I was just so impressed by the way the team collaborated to produce such a positive outcome; I think they really walked out what our university's mission is," said McKee. "What is important is that not only were our students skilled in their performance, but they also conducted themselves in a way that everyone commented on how positive their presence was at the competition."
Learn more about Regent University School of Law.
By Brett Wilson
Photo courtesy of Chelsea Schlittenhart