A historic snow blizzard did not stop the Tulane Thurgood Marshall Appellate Team from winning the regional Southwest Region Black Law Student Association Moot Court Competition, sending them to the national championship in Atlanta in March, the fourth time in as many years that Tulane’s team has won the regional title.
Additionally, the BLSA Mock Trial team took second place in the same SWBLSA Conference in the Constance Baker Motley Trial Competition. They will also be traveling to Atlanta this March to compete at the national championship.
Tulane BLSA appellate teams have in recent years dominated the Thurgood Marshall competition, and this year was no different. Although Tulane fielded two teams in that competition, the duo of Daevon Adams and Robert Morrison III, both 2Ls, took the top spot after a scramble in the unusual snowy conditions to get flights to the regional championship against St. Mary Law at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas, Texas.
The second appellate team, comprised of 2Ls Camrynn Ponds and Jillian Jackson, did exceptionally well during the preliminary rounds as well, which were forced online due to the blizzard that blanketed most of the southeast last week.
Appellate team members drove through the icy roads to the airport and flew to Dallas on Thursday night and argued as petitioners in the case in front of a panel of judges including Hon. Irma Carrillo Ramirez of the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The team was coached by Head Coach August Simien and Assistant Coach Ehsun Qamar, both 3Ls.
“As coaches, Ehsun Qamar and I are proud of ALL our competitors and are excited to watch Daevon and Robert compete again at Nationals in March,” said Simien. “As an appellate discipline we truly believe in the legacy that has been cultivated by those who came before us, and we hope to leave even more for those who come after us.”
In addition to the appellate team, the BLSA Mock Trial team also faced setbacks due to the historically cold weather in the region, and the remainder of the competition was forced to be done virtually.
Two Tulane teams also took part in that competition. The 2L Trial Team of Alecia Hobdy, Vanessa Glomo, Sophia Kapoor, and Cassandra Fernandez de Aenlee, were regional finalists and placed fourth in the competition. The 3L Trial Team battled it out in the championship round and came in second place, losing by just 5 points. Team members were 3Ls Katie Chong, Jenna Clayborn, Caroline Matkom and Bruce Carter.
On the trial team, two competitors were distinguished with Best Advocate Awards. 2L Sophia Kapoor and 3L Katie Chong, were acknowledged as exceptional prosecutors, in a case based on the murder of Tupak Shakur. Both teams were coached be Jenna Clayborn, who is the Tulane Moot Court BLSA Chair and Katie Chong, Tulane Moot Court Chief Justice.
“It has been the privilege of my life to watch both of these teams grow and see so much success at regionals. The Southwest BLSA conference is a tough one, and everyone exceed the expectations I set for them,” said Clayborn. “In the midst of a blizzard, these competitors gave it their all, and I’m going to treasure the opportunity I’ve had to guide these teams toward creating a legacy of achievement in mock trial.”
Because of their finalist finish, the 3L Mock Trial team will also travel to Atlanta to get a shot at the national title.
“I am incredibly proud of this program as Chief Justice,” said Chong. “It's amazing, as a woman of color, leading this program to see a team from each discipline succeed at this competition and take on the most competitive schools in the nation both at the appellate and trial level!”
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