About 150 accredited law schools compete in the National Moot Court competition, which goes through Thursday, but only 28 advance to the final competition. The University's team, consisting of law students Kristin Olson, Curtis Fisher and Nichole Burgess, won the regional competition in South Dakota. Only two teams from each of the 14 regions across the nation advance to the national competition, Clary said. Moot courts at the University give law students an opportunity to polish their oral argument and petitioning skills by working with Supreme Court cases. The Respondent's team argues the winning side of a case which was appealed in the Supreme Court, while the Petitioner's team argues the losing side of the case at the state level.
All teams argue the same case.
In addition to the Respondent's team victory, Burgess won Best Oralist, and the Petitioner's team wrote the Best Petitioner's Brief.