MCSOL Third Year Student, Jana J. Edmondson, Appointed to Serve as National Moot Court Specialist

Third-year law student, Jana J. Edmondson, was appointed in July 2008 to the national executive board of the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) as the 2008-2009 National Moot Court Specialist. In this capacity, Jana will aid in the organization and execution of the annual Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition, a national appellate advocacy competition. Her duties include researching, writing and editing the problem to be employed in the national competition as well as six regional competitions in the spring of 2009. Furthermore, she will facilitate the process of securing a corporate sponsor for the national competition in addition to overseeing administrative aspects of the regional competitions. Jana is the first student from MCSOL to serve on the national executive board of NBLSA.

After having placed in the Semi-Finals of the Southern Regional Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition in 2008 and then in the Quarter Finals at the national level (placing 6th in the nation overall), Jana is now excited to work behind the scenes to ensure this year's competitors have positive and rewarding experiences. In this national capacity, Jana will be afforded the opportunity to introduce MCSOL to a plethora of federal and state legal professionals accross the nation. Jana has been committed to NBLSA since the commencement of her legal studies. During her first and second years of law school, she served on the executive board of MCSOL R. Jess Brown Chapter of BLSA as First-Year Representative and Co-Chair of the Diversity Committee, respectively. The Diversity Committee is the first student-organized committee of its kind at MCSOL and was co-founded by Jana and current Southern Region Black Law Students Association (SRBLSA) executive board member, Lorin Washington Thomas, also a 3L at MSCOL. A former judicial intern to the Honorable Tyree Irving of Mississippi Court of Appeals, Jana is also an active member of the MCSOL Moot Court Board as well as a Pupil of the Charles Clark Inn of Court.

The National Black Law Student Association is a 501(c)(3) that is comprised of six regions, over 200 chapters and 6,000 members. It is the largest student-run organization in the nation. By virtue of its location in Mississippi, MCSOL is a member of the Southern Region, the largest region of NBLSA. For more information, please visit www.nblsa.org