Congratulations to the 2017 Jenkins Honors Moot Court Competition finalists. The teams advancing to the final rounds are as follows:
Nate Oesch and Elisabeth Thompson v. AJ Lawton and Ashley Smith
We appreciate the judging assistance in this round of the Hon. Nancy Joseph, Atty. Stephen Cox, Atty. Katherine Hartmann, Atty. Lauren Maddente, Atty. Hannah Schieber Jurss, and Atty. Mary Youssi.
Congratulations to the students in the Jenkins Honors Moot Court Competition who have moved on to the semifinal round of the competition. The students will be competing on Wednesday evening at 6:30 p.m. in the Appellate Courtroom and the Trial Courtroom to determine who will be advancing to the final round on April 11 at 4:00 p.m.
The teams will be paired as follows:
Nate Oesch and Elisabeth Thompson v. Meredith Donaldson and Ben Lucareli
AJ Lawton and Ashley Smith v. Mitch Bailey and Jacob Heuett
Congratulations to all the participants in the competition. We also very much appreciate the judges who grade briefs and participate in the preliminary rounds. This year we had a recent alum, Natalie Schiferl, who travelled all the way from Minnesota to judge the competition. One of the great things about moot court is how active our alums and volunteers are, and we appreciate their time and assistance very much. A special thank you to Samuel (Micah) Woo, Associate Justice in charge of the competition.
Best wishes to all of the competitors on Wednesday night.
Marquette’s labor and employment moot court team had an incredibly successful performance at New York Law School’s Wagner Moot Court Competition. On March 24th and 25th, Carly Gerards, Nick Sulpizio, and Corey Swinick competed and performed very well in both their oral advocacy and brief writing.
After the preliminary rounds, the team advanced to the octofinals with the 8th best score of the 40 teams competing. The team then advanced to the quarterfinals and eventually the semifinals–a Final Four team for Marquette.
In addition to advancing to the top four of the entire competition, the team took home the award for best overall Petitioner Brief. The team worked exceptionally hard on the brief and in their advocacy practices, and that hard work paid off. Great job, team!
The team is advised by Professor Paul Secunda and coached by Attorney Laurie Frey.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) was held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. David Conley, a current law student, shares his experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
The Wisconsin State Public Defender’s Office—Juvenile Division Milwaukee County
What kind of work did you do there?
The Law Offices of the Wisconsin State Public Defender represents indigent people who face criminal charges. However, the State Public Defender’s Office actually covers a variety of different cases where people are in need of legal representation. Milwaukee County is divided into two main offices. One office, (MKE Trial) handles adult criminal cases. The other office, (MKE Juvenile) represents juvenile clients facing a variety of life obstacles. These obstacles could be: (1) a juvenile delinquency petition, (2) a CHIPS (child in need of protective services) petition, or (3) a JIPS (juvenile in need of protective services) petition. The public defenders office advocates for juveniles who are in desperate need of legal help. The juvenile office also handles TPR (termination of parental rights) cases, and mental health commitment cases. As a Public Interest Law Society Fellow, it was my responsibility to assist the staff attorneys in the successful representation of these clients.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) was held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. Corinne Frutiger, a current law student, shares her experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
Milwaukee Justice Center.
What kind of work did you do there?
I got to continue a lot of the pro bono work that I was already very involved with, including meeting one on one with clients in the Family Forms Clinic and side by side with volunteer attorneys in the Marquette Volunteer Legal Clinic (MVLC). In the Family Forms Clinic I worked one on one with clients to help them navigate the family law process, whether that be the starting of an action, or jumping back into an existing case.
I also worked with attorneys in the MVLC to provide brief legal advice to clients on a range of matters, including such matters as family law, small/large claims, probate, landlord-tenant, and guardianships. I was given the opportunity to be fully integrated with the MJC staff and sit in on meetings to discuss what more we could do to better serve our clients and the Milwaukee community. It was truly incredible to see and be a part of a group that works tirelessly to continue to improve their services for the benefit of the community. Watching the MJC staff, volunteer attorneys, and even some of the other volunteer students work so hard and brainstorm together to serve the full extent of a client’s needs was truly memorable and an experience I am truly grateful for.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) will be held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. Natalie Lewandowski, a current law student, shares her experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
I worked at the Milwaukee Justice Center (MJC) in the Milwaukee County Courthouse.
What kind of work did you do there?
Most days I worked in the Family Forms Clinic with other MJC volunteers and supervising attorneys, helping clients with minor forms they wanted to file in the courthouse, such as divorce forms or forms to modify placement and custody orders for their children. The vast majority of these clients cannot afford an attorney, but earn slightly above the (extremely low) federal poverty level, so they don’t qualify for free legal aid, either. The only practical option for these people may be to represent themselves in the matter. That’s where the volunteers at the MJC come in, helping these clients with the forms and guiding them through the process of how and where to file them in the courthouse and what the next steps might be.
I also helped plan and execute the MJC’s annual 5K Run for Justice, which raises money for the MJC to continue helping people access the justice system (and was really fun!). In addition, I did some work with the MJC’s Mobile Legal Clinic, which is an amazing project that brings the services of the MJC—including brief legal advice by attorneys—to places in the community where it’s hard for residents to make it to the MJC for free legal help.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) will be held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. Don Applegate, a current law student, shares his experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
I worked at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in Boston.
What kind of work did you do there?
I was placed in the Narcotics Unit for the summer, so I had the privilege of working with many Assistant DA’s whose main goal is to make the Boston community a safer place to live. My time there was equally divided between writing various motions and conducting investigative work. Some days would be spent drafting Direct Indictment Memos or Memos in Opposition to the Defendant’s Motion to Suppress Evidence, and other days would be spent watching security camera footage or listening to jail calls to assist an ADA with an ongoing investigation. Also, every week a Unit Chief from the DA’s Office would address all the office interns during the lunch hour. It was fascinating to hear the various tasks each unit is responsible for, how the different units work together, and how passionate every employee was for their unit.
How was the experience meaningful to you?
I had a front row seat to see how the criminal justice system works–the key word being justice. I saw how the DA’s Office as a whole values justice above conviction rates and how the Office cares just as much about helping victims, witnesses, and the community as prosecuting an alleged criminal. My favorite example of how the Office gives victims a voice is the Now You See: A Celebration of Courageous Kids initiative. This project reveals the bravery of sexually and physically abused children by including a photograph of the child’s eyes along with a description of the eyes in the child’s own words. This is just one of the many examples how the Office uses unique and innovative ways to help victims other than prosecuting on their behalf. In the end, I saw a side of the lawyer profession I had not strongly considered for myself before last summer, but this experience has inspired me to further pursue this career path.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) will be held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. Ben Lucareli, a current law student, shares his experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
In the HIDTA (High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area) unit of the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office.
What kind of work did you do there?
I worked closely with multiple attorneys in the HIDTA unit, helping them to prosecute felony-level drug and gun crimes. During my time in the office, I wrote numerous briefs at the trial court level, conducted legal research for the attorneys, and wrote and filed criminal complaints. I also helped the attorneys sift through evidence, transcripts, and other documents to prepare for trial. Each week, I accompanied the attorneys to various hearings, as well as a few jury trials. During the hearings and trials, I would take notes for the attorneys and help them organize and present evidence to the jury. In addition to my work with the attorneys, I also went on a ride-along with a local police department, and got to work on projects with local police officers and DEA agents.
The 24th Annual Howard B. Eisenberg Do-Gooders’ Auction on behalf of the Law School’s Public Interest Law Society (PILS) will be held on February 17 at the Law School. Proceeds from the event go to support PILS Fellowships to enable Marquette law students to do public interest work in the summer. Elisabeth Thompson, a current law student, shares her experience here as a PILS Fellow.
Where did you work as a PILS Fellow?
The ACLU of Wisconsin.
What kind of work did you do there?
Most of my work was legal research and writing. I prepared two big pre-litigation memos, both in areas of substantive law to which I’d not been previously exposed. I also drafted a complaint and wrote a number of on-the-fly memos on an array of legal questions, and I got to participate in some meetings with clients.
How was the experience meaningful to you?
The cases I worked on were incredibly meaningful. They were timely; they were high-impact; they were rooted in the local community but had national resonance. My work helped lay the groundwork for litigation that will raise awareness and advance justice. This was motivating to me. It also speaks to the value of the PILS fellowship; the funds that enabled me to spend the summer at the ACLU contributed directly to advancing their important work.
The Jenkins Honors Moot Court Competition is the appellate moot court competition for Marquette law students and is the capstone event of the intramural moot court program. Students are invited to participate based on their top performance in the fall Appellate Writing and Advocacy course at the Law School.
Congratulations to the participants in the 2017 Jenkins Honors Moot Court Competition:
Ambrose (Mitch) Bailey
Bryn Baker
John Binder
Meredith Donaldson
Corinne Frutiger
Jacob Heuett
Hayley Kresnak
A.J. Lawton
Ben Lucareli
Nathan Oesch
Robert Ollman
Courtney Roelandts
Anjali Sharma
Ashley Smith
Elisabeth Thompson
Tsz King Tze
I had the privilege of working with two outstanding National Moot Court Competition (NMCC) teams again this year. The Region VIII round of the NMCC was hosted by Marquette November 19-20, 2016.
Please congratulate team members Kayla McCann, Emily Tercilla, and Samuel (Micah) Woo, who received the highest brief score in the competition and award for best Petitioner’s brief. Attorneys Jason Luczak and Max Stephenson coached the team.
Please also congratulate team members David Conley, Andrew Mong, and Kiel Killmer for their performance at the competition. The team had the top placing Respondent’s brief and advanced to the quarterfinals (top eight teams). Attorneys Jeremy Klang, Jesse Blocher, and Michael Cerjak coached the team.
Congratulations to the winners of the 2016 Jenkins Honors Moot Court Competition, Amardeep (Simi) Singh and Sara McNamara. Congratulations also go to finalists Samuel Draver and Alan Mazzulla, who additionally won the Franz C. Eschweiler Prize for Best Brief. Simi Singh won the Ramon A. Klitzke Prize for Best Oralist.
The competitors argued before a large audience in the Appellate Courtroom. Presiding over the final round were Hon. Diane Sykes, Hon. Brett Kavanaugh, and Hon. Gary Feinerman.
Many thanks to the judges and competitors for their hard work, enthusiasm, and sportsmanship in all the rounds of competition, as well as to the moot court executive board and Law School administration and staff for their work in putting on the event. Special thanks to Dean Kearney for his support of the competition. Thank you as well to the Moot Court Association for its work in putting this event together, and especially 3L executive board members Larissa Dallman and Andrew Otto.
Students are selected to participate in the competition based on their success in the fall Appellate Writing and Advocacy class at the Law School.
Here is a link to the final round video.