Peter Wertz, 2L Research Assistant and Team Manager; Eunji Jo, 2L; Briana Knox, 2L; Mary Lauren Kulovitz, 2L,; and Mary Ksobiech, Assistant Dean for Students and Legal Writing Lecturer.
Eunji Jo (’17), Briana Knox (’17) and Mary Lauren Kulovitz (’17) will proceed to the National Moot Court Competition in New York City after Alabama Law defeated Belmont University and was named Regional Champion in Oxford, Mississippi.
Within a field of 11 teams, the 2L Moot Court Fellows compiled a perfect record, defeating law school teams from the University of Memphis, Vanderbilt University, Mississippi College of Law and the University of Tennessee to advance to the final round of competition. Knox was named Best Oralist of the final round.
“Throughout the competition, the team demonstrated incredible knowledge, skill and professionalism in a field of primarily third-year students,” said Mary Ksobiech, Assistant Dean for Students and Legal Writing Lecturer.
The 2L Moot Court Fellows program allows students to gain two full years of moot court experience. They draft briefs and prepare oral arguments for two external competitions, and they assist with the Protective Life ABA Moot Court Team, which gives them additional insight into the legal writing and research process.
“As they work through these appellate problems, they teach themselves to become ‘experts’ on the issues,” said Ksobiech, who coached the team.
An extra year of moot court is invaluable experience for students who want to go into litigation. The team practiced two hours a day, five days a week to prepare for the competition.
“We always went in with the goal that we were going to dominate our side of the problem,’’ Knox said.
It is difficult for teams to know what judges will ask or how they will respond to an argument. To help prepare students for different kinds of questions, Ksobiech invited law professors and students to practice sessions to act as judges – a strategy Kulovitz said was effective.
“It’s one thing to structure your arguments on paper and be able to link different words and concepts together,” Kulovitz said, “but it’s another to be able to stand behind the podium in front of judges and be able to construct answers on the spot to their questions that are trying to undo your argument.”
Ultimately, the students said they wanted to win the competition for Ksobiech because she dedicated so much of her time to helping them prepare for oral arguments.
“She was at every practice,” Jo said. “Her level of dedication and enthusiasm for this team really motivated us to win.”
Ksobiech said the team will continue to practice oral arguments and will study the briefs submitted by the other schools advancing to the national competition. She plans to recruit former team members now in practice to help judge practice rounds.
