Sections & Divisions
Virtual Thurgood Marshall Memorial Moot Court Competition.
YOUNGER LAWYERS DIVISION The YLD’s Thurgood Marshall Memorial Moot Court Competition Goes Virtual! Teams representing schools from across the country participated in the 26th Annual Thurgood Marshall Memorial Moot Court Competition from March 8-12, 2021. After canceling the oral argument portion of the 2020 competition due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the entire 2021 competition was held virtually. The competition kicked off on March 8 with a virtual program and a welcome keynote address from Colonel Luis O. Rodriguez, associate judge, U.S. Army Court of Criminal Appeals. Following the welcome address, all were invited to a training to address any questions regarding the virtual format. While initially nervous about potential challenges (such as mute button mishaps, miscommunications, and screen delays), there were ultimately very few and the competition ran smoothly. Making it one of the premier moot court competitions in the country, the oral argument rounds mirror real court proceedings. As in previous years, the volunteer judges
who serve as judges in the competition are actual state or federal judges, practitioners, or scholars, thereby reinforcing the “real-world” experience for the law students. While oral argument rounds are normally held in courthouses in Washington, D.C., as lawyers have had to pivot to virtual hearings, conferences, and even trials in some cases, students participated in the oral argument rounds virtually via Zoom this year. FBA staff served as bailiffs in the virtual courtrooms. Following the oral argument rounds, judges submitted their scores and feedback via an online platform. The 2021 problem was authored by Hon. Melissa Burns, U.S. magistrate judge for the District of Arizona. The problem presented two constitutional issues arising from a hypothetical federal criminal case: improper search and seizure under the Fourth Amendment and a defendant’s due process right to a complete defense at trial. With regard to the first issue, defendant Kenny Bearson was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder. Evidence at trial included a pawn shop receipt that the police had seized from the defendant’s home. The pawn shop receipt, which was seen in plain view, indicated that the defendant had pawned several
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rifles (some capable of shooting bullets that were found at the scene of the crime) weeks after the murders. Before going into the defendant’s home, the police met at the front door, where the defendant’s sister, who apparently had been smoking medicinal marijuana and, after questioning from the police, consented to let them enter. Eventually those issues found their way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Each of the teams submitted a written brief, supporting either the Petitioner or Respondent, and participated in two preliminary rounds, taking place March 9 and March 10. Following the preliminary rounds, teams were ranked based on a combination of written and oral argument scores, and the top 16 teams advanced to the next round. The playoff rounds, which consisted of the round of 16, quarterfinal, semi-final, and final rounds, took place on March 11 and the morning of March 12. The teams advanced in the playoff rounds based on a combination of written and oral argument scores. The final round was held on the afternoon of March 12. During this round, the competition champion was selected based on oral argument in the final round only. The final round panel consisted
