Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. Mississippi Moot Court Championship

Every spring, Mississippi College School of Law hosts the Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. Mississippi Moot Court Championship.  This is a competition between Mississippi College School of Law and The University of Mississippi Law School.  This appellate rivalry has become the premier event in the Mississippi law school community.  Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak, & Stewart, P.C., one of the nation’s top labor & employment law firms, began sponsoring this competition in 2008 and will continue to do so annually.  Because of their generous sponsorship, the competition problem will focus on Labor Law.

Second-year MC Law students that competed in the Sixth Annual Mississippi Moot Court Championship were Josh Bates, John Beyer, Levy Leatherman, Matthew Newman, Jeremy Pastorek, John Robbins, Gary Thompson, Michael Traylor, and Ben Tremonte.  Third-year MC Law competitors consisted of Jeremy Clay, Jesse Granneman, Tray Hairston, Matt McDade, Lindsey Oswalt, Jessica Pitts, and Ryan Skertich.  MC Law students who advanced to the quarterfinal round were 2Ls Ben Tremonte, John Robbins, John Beyer, and Gary Thompson; and 3Ls Matt McDade, Tray Hairston, Lindsey Oswalt, and Jeremy Clay.  Semifinalists were 3Ls Matt McDade, Tray Hairston, Lindsey Oswalt, and Jeremy Clay. 

The Championship’s final argument was held before a guest panel of judges consisting of Tim Lindsay and Bert Ehrhardt, both partners from Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.; the Honorable Judge Melba Dixon of the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission; the Honorable Judge Ed Bryant, who is a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Tennessee; and the Honorable Judge Keith Starrett, who is a Senior District Judge for the Southern District of Mississippi.  After providing excellent oral argument in the chambers of the Mississippi Supreme Court, Lindsey Oswalt and Jeremy Clay wound up victorious and claimed the trophy on behalf of MC Law.

MCSOL would like to thank all the judges and coaches for participating in this year’s competition.  A special appreciation goes out to Wes Ehrhardt of Ogletree Deakins, Judge Linda Anderson of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, and Judge David Bramlett, also of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.

3Ls Lindsey Oswalt and Jeremy Clay posing with the Championship trophy after winning the final round.

Lindsey Oswalt, Jeremy Clay and Dean Rosenblatt pose with the Championship trophy.

August A. Rendigs, Jr. National Products Liability Moot Court Competition

The Twenty-Second Annual August A. Rendigs, Jr. National Products Liability Moot Court Competition was held on April 2-4, 2009, in Cincinnati, OH.  The Rendigs Competition is the only national competition exclusively devoted to products liability law.  The competition is open to thirty teams from ABA-accredited law schools.  Each competing team must write one appellate brief and argue both sides of the appeal.  All participants must argue at least once during the three preliminary rounds.  Based on preliminary round performance, teams will be selected to compete in the quarterfinal, semifinal, and final rounds.

Mississippi College School of Law had two teams compete in this year’s competition.  One team consisted of 2Ls Kyle White and Morgan Smith, and a second team consisted of 2Ls Nick Crawford and Christopher Meredith.  Both teams performed extremely well and advanced to the quarterfinal round of the competition.  The teams were coached by Rusty Comley (‘06) & Leigh Vernon (‘99) of Watkins & Eager, and Todd Butler (‘08).

ABA National Criminal Justice Trial Advocacy Competition

The Nineteenth Annual American Bar Association (ABA) National Criminal Justice Trial Advocacy Competition was held on April 2-4, 2009, at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago, IL.  The competition, which was sponsored by the John Marshall Law School and the Criminal Justice Section of the ABA, consisted of twenty teams from schools such as Harvard Law School, Georgetown University Law Center and The Honourable Society of King's Inns of Ireland.  At the end of the Competition, reports from the 120 Chicago-area lawyers and judges who evaluated the competitors were that this year consisted of the best collection of student advocates in the Competition's history.

Representing MC Law in this year’s competition were 3L advocates Justin Starling and Andrew Holmes, with 1Ls Jessica Murray and Neil Wilson serving as witnesses.  The team made an excellent showing, and Justin Starling received an award in the competition.  The teams were coached by Eric Brown (‘08).

Competitors from left to right: Andrew Holmes (3L), Jessica Murray (1L), Justin Starling (3L), and Neil Wilson (1L)

From left to right: Neil Wilson (1L), Professor Vicki Lowery, Eric Brown (‘08), Andrew Holmes (3L), Justin Starling (3L), and Jessica Murray (1L)