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Fifth Annual
Williams Institute Moot Court Competition
* * * UCLA is pleased to announce this year's Williams Institute Moot Court Competition. The competition's Executive Board and the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation Law and Public Policy cordially invite you to participate in our competition, which will be held February 21, 2009 on the UCLA campus. Overview The Williams Institute Moot Court Competition is the only national competition dedicated exclusively to the areas of sexual orientation and gender identity law. This year’s competition will provide an opportunity for competitors to write an appellate brief on a current legal topic and to argue the case before a panel of judges. The competition is designed to promote and recognize the finest oral and written advocacy on a significant problem in sexual orientation and gender identity law. Competition History and Previous Winners The inaugural competition took place in February 2005. It was a one-day competition and involved 13 teams from 11 schools. The problem dealt with same-sex marriage and the final round of competition was presided over by 9th Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt. The team from Chicago-Kent College of Law won. The 2006 competition evolved into a two-day competition with the preliminary rounds taking place in early February 2006. Again, the problem dealt with same-sex marriage and participation increased with 17 teams from 14 schools competing. The University of California, Davis and Syracuse University advanced to the final round and argued in front of Steven Levinson of the Hawaii Supreme Court, J. Spencer Letts and Dean Pregerson both from the US District Court of the Central District of California. Syracuse University won.
In 2007, 22 teams
from across the country briefed and argued the
constitutionality of restrictions on same-sex couples
adopting children. The Honorable Justices Susan Owens
and Barbara Madsen from the Washington State Supreme
Court presided over the Final Round along with Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Raymond Fisher. Teams
from UConn and NYU faced off in the Final Round, and NYU
won. The upcoming competition will take place over the course of two weekends. Four rounds of arguments will take place on Saturday, February 21, 2009. This will include two preliminary rounds, a quarterfinal and semifinal round. The final round will take on Friday, March 13, 2009 during the Williams Institute’s 8th Annual Update. Finalist competitors will have their final round of travel expenses covered by the Williams Institute. During the preliminary rounds, teams will have the opportunity to argue both on brief and off brief, thus guaranteeing each team a minimum of two rounds of arguments. Scoring for the preliminary rounds will be based on the written brief and both rounds of oral arguments. The top eight teams will advance to the quarterfinals and from there the top four teams will move on to the semifinals with the two highest scoring teams invited to compete in the final round. Scoring in the quarterfinal, semifinal and final rounds will be based only on oral arguments. 2008-2009 Competition Calendar
Teams Each team may consist of two or three members. If a team has three members, all must argue in the competition but only two may argue in any given round. Prizes The winning team will receive a prize of $500. Prizes of $200 will also be given for the best brief and the best oral advocate. Registration To register for the competition, please complete the registration form (see link - registration is now closed) and return it along with a non-refundable registration fee of $300 (checks payable to “Williams Institute/UCLA Foundation”) to the address on the registration form. Your registration fee includes continental breakfast and lunch for all student participants and their coaches on the day of the competition. Registration will open on October 20, 2008 and closes on November 20, 2008. There is a limit of 24 teams for this competition and each school may enter one or two teams. If more than 24 teams register, one team from each school will be guaranteed a slot and the remaining slots will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis, so register early if your school plans on sending two teams!
Judicial Education Program Official 2008-2009 Rules (see link) Sample Score Sheets These sample score sheets are intended to provide guidance as to the scoring criteria for the written brief and oral rounds of competition. The Executive Board reserves the right to modify the score sheets. Problem The 2008-2009 problem will be posted on November 26, 2008. Access information will be emailed to all registered teams. Briefs Competition briefs will be posted here beginning February 2, 2009. Access information will be emailed to all registered teams. Accommodations We have compiled this list to assist you in arranging accommodations for the competition. The hotels are listed in order from closest to farthest from the UCLA campus. We have also included some services provided by each hotel. Make sure to mention UCLA when making your reservation as many of the hotels listed offer a discount for UCLA visitors. Please keep in mind that the listed prices are subject to change. We hope this list is useful - feel free to contact us if you have any questions about hotel location, neighborhoods, transportation or the like! Alternately, feel free to visit UCLA’s website for listings of hotels in the area.
Competition Brochure
(see link) For additional information or questions regarding the competition please email WilliamsMootCourt@law.ucla.edu. We look forward to hearing from you and to your participation in our competition!
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