Summer 2011

DUKE LAW MOOT COURT BOARD

Duke  Law  Moot  Court  Board  Alumni  &  Friends:  

Welcome  to  the  latest  edition  of  the  Duke  Law  Moot  Court  Board  Newsletter.  There  were  some  major  national  successes  for  the  Moot  Court  Board  this  past  year,  along  with  some  changes.  We  are  honored  to  have  the  opportunity  to  reach  out  to  you  and  to  update  our  alumni  about  our  achievements  this  past  year  and  to  inform  you  of  our  plans  for  next  year.  

Contents:

ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition

2011-2012 Moot Court Executive Board

Moot Court Board Member Experiences

Duke Law Moot Court Competitions

For questions, comments, or submissions, please email our Alumni & Social Chair: Jennifer.Lan@duke.edu

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Dear Moot Court Board Alumni,

Last year, the Moot Court Board thrived under the leadership of Co-Chairs Matt Vandenberg ‘11 and Ben Baucom ‘11. Matt and Ben, along with last year’s executive board, did a fantastic job organizing and executing Duke Law School’s intramural tournaments. The Dean’s Cup was a complete success, leaving Dean Levi and our final round judges very impressed. The same can be said of Jessup and the Hardt Cup, thanks in large part to the dedication of those tournaments’ coordinators. Matt and Ben also spearheaded a major structural change to the board this year, drafting a constitutional amendment (approved by the board) to replace the traditional two co-chair system with a single president. In addition, the board voted to replace the vice president position with an Intramural Coordinator (who oversees the tournaments Duke hosts) and an Interscholastic Coordinator (who oversees the tournaments Duke competes in at other law schools).

With such big shoes to fill, the board is working hard to make next year just as successful. Catherine Lawson ’12 is applying her excellent oral argument skills and keen leadership sense as the Interscholastic Chair. Catherine will select our tournaments and act has a “head coach” in helping teams prepare for their battles abroad. Dorie Mayne ‘12 is back on the executive board this year as the Intramural Coordinator, drawing on the intimate knowledge of the board she gained as Secretary to ensure the success of Jessup, Dean’s, and Hardt this year. I’m primarily concerned with increasing the board’s role at the law school by organizing a speaker series and providing opportunities to engage with appellate advocacy that are open to the entire law school.

I thank you all for your continued support. Our successes last year couldn’t have been possible without those of you that coached teams, attended tournaments, gave advice, and acted as tournament judges. I hope that you will continue to stay involved with the board into the coming year.

Thank you all, Jenna Feistritzer J.D./LL.M./M.E.M. 2012

A Letter from Madame President Jenna Feistritzer

This April, a team of students from Duke comprised of Ben Baucom ’11, Karen Beach ’11, and Catherine Lawson ’12, won the national championship round of the American Bar Association’s National Appellate Advocacy Competition, beating out the 207 teams from law schools around the country that competed in this annual tournament.

In addition to being a member of the national champion team, Moot Court Board Co-Chair, Ben Baucom, was named second best oral advocate in the nation. 2L Catherine Lawson was also named 7th best advocate in the nation.

The panel that judged the championship round selected Duke’s team as the winner by a unanimous vote of the five judges. In addition to emerging undefeated from their regional competition, Duke’s national champion team again went undefeated in Chicago, besting six other teams, including two that were more highly seeded in the national rounds.

Duke Law Moot Court on the National Stage:

Duke Law’s Karen Beach, Catherine Lawson, and Ben Baucom at ABA Nationals

For questions, comments, or submissions, please email our Alumni & Social Chair: Jennifer.Lan@duke.edu

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President: Jennifer Feistritzer Intramural Chair: Dorie Mayne

Interscholastic Chair: Catherine Lawson Dean's Cup Coordinators: Alex Bluebond, Elle

Gilley, and Bryan Leitch Hardt Cup Coordinators: Koree Blyleven, Chris

Jones, and Oscar Shine Jessup Cup Coordinators: Chris Ford and

Jennifer Hayes Interscholastic Chairs: Josh Podolnick and

Stephanie Richards Alumni and Social Chair: Jennifer Ying Lan

Treasurer: Chris Ford Secretary: Andrew Barr

2011-2012 Moot Court Executive Board:

Andrea Hamilton ’11 and Zachary Linowitz ’12 took first place at the Luke Charles Moore Invitational Moot Court Competition, hosted by Howard University School of Law Feb. 25-26, 2011. In addition to winning the tournament, the team also won runner-up best brief. Caroline Mix ’11 was the team’s coach. The Luke Charles Moore Invitational at Howard University School of Law is the nation’s preeminent civil rights moot court tournament. This year, students from all over the country argued the constitutionality of two mock statutes seeking to regulate ethnic studies classes in public schools and illegal immigrant identification and detainment by state law enforcement.

Final round judges included the Honorable Andre M. Davis of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the Honorable Inez Smith Reid of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals.

The Moore Invitational at Howard University

For questions, comments, or submissions, please email our Alumni & Social Chair: Jennifer.Lan@duke.edu

Duke Law’s Andrea Hamilton, Zachary Linowitz, and Caroline Mix on the steps of the United States

Supreme Court.

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Moot Court Board Student Experiences Competing in the ABA Moot Court Tournament was a highlight of my time in law school. Of course, winning the Brooklyn Regional and advancing to the elimination rounds of the Finals in Chicago were exciting. Two other parts of the experience, however, proved far more valuable and rewarding. First, the hours of brief writing and mooting were great experience that helped sharpen my skills for future tournaments and my future career as a lawyer. Second, the hours spent with my teammates forged lifelong friendships and mutual respect for one another.

~Grayson Lambert ’12

Grayson was a member of the Duke Law ABA Team along with Leah Shen ’11 and Nels Vulin ’12. Dean’s Fellow Steve Rawson ‘10 coached both teams.

At the New York City Bar Nationals, I had the pleasure of being a part of a team of third year students comprised of Leah Shen ’11, Ben Baucom ’11, and myself. We advanced to the national round of this prestigious tournament.

As the top seed in oral argument scores at the regional tournament in Richmond, Virginia, the team came in second by a narrow margin in the final round but nevertheless advanced to the national tournament in New York City. After two tough arguments, our team did not advance, but we were pleased with its overall performance.

~ Jenna Feistritzer ‘12

Jenna is the incoming President of the Duke Law Moot Court Executive Board for 2011-2012.

Emily May ’13 (left) won the annual Hardt Cup Moot Court Competition for first year law students. May and co-finalist Elle Gilley ’13 (right) argued a Fourth Amendment case before a three-judge panel in April 2011. The panel consisted of Chief Judge Louise W. Flanagan of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge Richard Mark Gergel ’75 of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina, and Justice Paul Martin Newby, Associate Justice for the North Carolina Supreme Court.

The students argued a case in which the FBI placed a GPS monitoring device on a suspect’s vehicle during a narcotics investigation. Their arguments focused on whether or not drivers have a reasonable expectation of privacy on public roadways.

For questions, comments, or submissions, please email our Alumni & Social Chair: Jennifer.Lan@duke.edu