King Hall Excels in Moot Court Competitions
King Hall students were active in moot court and mock trial competitions all over the country in February, placing UC Davis among the top finishers in several tournaments.
Monica Baumann '09, Gabrielle Janssens '09, and Michael Minkler '09 went to White Plains, New York to represent UC Davis at the Twenty-First Annual National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition at Pace Law School February 19-21. The team was a finalist for overall best brief of the competition and was awarded Best Brief for the United States of America, the side they briefed. Of 70 teams competing, the King Hall team was one of 27 to advance to the quarterfinals, with both Janssens and Minkler named Best Oralist in two preliminary rounds.
In the Vanderbilt First Amendment Moot Court Competition held at Vanderbilt University Law in Nashville, Tennessee on February 19-20, the UC Davis team of Sarah McBride '09 and Tom Garberson '09 reached the competition's "final four" before being eliminated in a split decision by the eventual champion, BYU Law School. McBride was honored as Best Oralist among the 72 students in the competition.
In the Williams Institute Moot Court Competition on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law held at UCLA February 21, the King Hall team of Craig Baumgartner '10 and Amanda Westendorf '10 faced off against 28 teams to advance from the morning rounds to the afternoon quarterfinals and the tournament's "final four" before elimination.
UC Davis sent two teams to the Northern California Regional for the National Mock Trial Competition in San Francisco February 21-22. The team of Nabil Bisharat '09, Jeffrey Edwards '09, and Kelly Van Aken '10 tried cases against teams from UC Hastings and UC Berkeley and lost two close, split decisions. The second King Hall team of Alexander Merton '11, Joseph Naddour ‘09, and Jeffrey Osofsky '09 won preliminary round contests against Golden Gate University and Santa Clara University as well as a semifinal round rematch against Golden Gate University to advance to the championship round, where it lost in a split decision.
UC Davis also took part in the NYU Immigration Law Moot Court Tournament held in New York over the weekend. Jon Robles '09, Kirsten Mickelson '10, and David Hofteizer ‘10 fought through the competition until finally being eliminated in the fifth round by the tournament's eventual champion, Georgetown Law.
