Registration Open for 2015-2016 National Health Law Moot Court Competition

I'm posting this on behalf of my colleague Cheryl Anderson, who directs our moot court programs at SIU School of Law. This is a great competition. If your school hasn't sent a team to this, you should apply. The problems are always excellent, and the level of competition is superb. Plus, Carbondale is a nice place in the fall.

The American College of Legal Medicine, the Southern Illinois University School of Law, and the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Department of Medical Humanities will once again jointly sponsor the 2015-2016 National Health Law Moot Court Competition.  The Competition, our twenty-fourth, will be held on November 6 and 7, 2015 at the Southern Illinois University School of Law in Carbondale, Illinois.  With the support of the American College of Legal Medicine, as in past years, several scholarship grants will be awarded.  We have been extremely pleased with the Competition over the last several years and look forward to an even better competition in 2015-2016.

On-line registration for the competition is now open at this link: http://law.siu.edu/academics/center-programs/health-law-policy/health-competition.html.  Local hotel and location information will be posted at a later date.  We would appreciate it if you would forward this email to the appropriate person at your school for their information.  You can also watch for the brochure which will be mailed soon.

If you have any questions, please send them to mootct@siu.edu or you may call our Moot Court Board Assistant, Kristy White, at 618/453.8299 or email her at kristyw@siu.edu.

We hope to see a team from your school at the Competition in November.

Cheryl Anderson

Director of Moot Court Programs

Southern Illinois University

School of Law, M/C 6804                                      

1150 Douglas Drive                                      

Carbondale, IL  62901

618-453-5634                                                

cheryla@siu.edu

MORE THOUGHTS ON EATS 2015 FROM AJ BELLIDO DE LUNA

1.       We are fortunate to have a place where coaches from all over the country can come together and break bread. The closer we are, the better likelihood that we can work things out on the road when we are in the heat of battle. It provides perspective and a reminder that we are all in this business to help train others. That is a mighty responsibility. We are fortunate that Charlie Rose and Stetson provides the space for us to engage with each other. A special thanks to Peggy Gordon and the folks behind the scenes that make things happens.

2.       I mentioned that Joe Lester shared with me the web site created by Jeff Brooks down at LSU for all Mock Trial Tourneys around the country. Here is the website again. I am sure Jeff would be happy to get any updates to help keep the list fresh.  Thanks Jeff for putting this together.

http://advocacy.law.lsu.edu/resources/list-of-national-trial-advocacy-competitions/

See you all on the road. I miss you already.

--A.J. Bellido de Luna

A New Genre of Mock Trial Competitions: A Guest Commentary

Suparna Malempati, Director of Advocacy Programs at Atlanta's John Marshall Law School, contributed the following guest commentary about a recent small-scale interschool mock trial competition. I've blogged about this new style of competition (link here) in the past, and so have others (links here, here and here). The bottom line is that you can provide a superior competitive advocacy teaching experience for your students, free from the things that make many large-scale regional or national competitions unpleasant, if you find a couple of like-minded trial directors at other schools and plan your own competition.

A new genre of mock trial competitions has begun, and I am fortunate to be a part.  My mock trial team recently attended a wonderful competition hosted by the Southern Illinois University Law School.  This competition was the result of a unique collaboration between SIU, Northern Illinois University, and Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School.  Interschool mock trial competitions are a growing trend, one which provides great experience and fun.

A League of Your Own: The User’s Guide to Small-Scale Interschool Trial Competitions

Anecdotal evidence suggests it is becoming increasingly difficult for schools to place teams in fall invitational tournaments. This is especially true for programs that have not yet achieved national prominence, are new, or are rebuilding. Other schools are experiencing budget cuts that require a reduction in travel expenses and the number of competitions in which a school can participate.

If you're being left out or forced to cut back on competitions, have no worries. You can try a small-scale interschool trial competition that is inexpensive, provides a better educational experience for your students, and is more fun than a traditional competition. In this blog post, I’m going to explain how to set one of these competitions up on your own. It’s much easier than you might think, and the competition format lends itself to experimentation and innovation that simply isn’t possible with one of the large invitational tournaments or regional tournaments.