Richmond Law Students Win Best Brief Award at National Moot Court Competition

At the Billings, Exum & Frye National Moot Court Competition hosted by Elon University School of Law, Lauren Lamp and Rainni Crutchfield of the University of Richmond School of Law earned the Best Brief-Petitioner honor.

Competing against 38 other teams representing 25 law schools, the pair advanced to the Round of 16, known as the Octafinals.

“Receiving the Best Brief award was better than winning the entire competition!” Lamp said. “That’s because in the legal field, issues and cases are frequently won or lost on the briefs, and this is especially true in the appellate context where—in the Fourth Circuit for example—only about 12% of all cases are granted oral argument.”

Participating teams were tasked with examining a pair of high-profile legal questions: whether a state infringed upon a plaintiff’s First Amendment free speech rights by canceling a personalized license plate featuring terminology considered offensive, and whether deploying warrantless Automatic License Plate Recognition systems, such as Flock cameras, breaches the Fourth Amendment ban against unlawful searches.

Lamp credits externships that she completed at Richmond Law with preparing her for this moment.

“Last spring, I externed with the Hon. Roger Gregory on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and this semester I am externing with the Virginia Office of the Solicitor General,” she said. “Both of these placements have required me to research complex legal issues, draft strong legal arguments, and succinctly present my conclusions, all skills that I drew upon during the competition.”

Shannon Grow and Jacob Maldonado, both second-year students representing a second Richmond Law contingent, participated in the Elon event but fell just short of reaching the Octafinals. Both teams were coached by Cullen Seltzer, L’93 and adjunct professor.

This year’s Carrico Moot Court Competition, organized by the student-led Moot Court Board, asked teams to evaluate a complex case involving police retention of personal electronic devices following an arrest. Seventeen students participated in the competition.

Competitors submitted briefs and participated in up to five rounds of oral argument. The competition culminated in a final round ultimately won by 2L Sajith Suraweera, which was judged by two Richmond Law alumni, the Hon. Marla Graff Decker, L’83, and the Hon. Jayne Ann Pemberton, L’01, as well as Prof. Jack Preis.

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