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| Arthur von Briesen Memorial Moot Court Competition | |
|---|---|
| Name | Arthur von Briesen Memorial Moot Court Competition |
| Established | 1957 |
| Venue | New York City |
| Organizer | New York City Bar Association |
| Participants | Law students |
Arthur von Briesen Memorial Moot Court Competition is an annual interscholastic appellate advocacy contest held in New York City that engages law students from across the United States in simulated appellate oral argument and brief writing. The competition emphasizes appellate procedure, appellate advocacy, and professional responsibility, attracting participants from prominent law schools and legal institutions and featuring panels of judges drawn from federal courts, state courts, and bar associations.
The competition was established in 1957 amid a landscape shaped by postwar legal education reforms and the expansion of clinical programs at institutions such as Columbia Law School, Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, New York University School of Law, and Fordham University School of Law. Early sponsors included figures associated with the New York City Bar Association, American Bar Association, and civic organizations tied to the legacy of attorneys active during the era of Tammany Hall, Robert Moses, and municipal reform movements. Over decades the event intersected with developments involving the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and the judicial careers of alumni who later served on the New York Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of the United States, and federal judicial appointments through presidential administrations including John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden. Notable participating institutions have included Georgetown University Law Center, University of Pennsylvania Law School, Cornell Law School, University of California, Berkeley School of Law, Stanford Law School, University of Chicago Law School, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, University of Michigan Law School, Duke University School of Law, University of Virginia School of Law, and Boston University School of Law.
Rounds typically mirror appellate procedure used in courts such as the Supreme Court of the United States, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and state appellate courts like the New York Court of Appeals and the California Supreme Court. Teams submit written briefs that conform to citation norms influenced by the Bluebook and oral arguments judged under time limits analogous to those in courts including the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Panels often feature judges from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, former clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States and advocates from firms such as Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Sullivan & Cromwell, White & Case, and public interest groups like the ACLU and the Legal Aid Society. Procedural rules address issues of mootness, standing, jurisdiction, and preservation of error consistent with precedents from cases such as Marbury v. Madison, Brown v. Board of Education, and New York Times Co. v. Sullivan.
Eligibility typically extends to students enrolled in law schools accredited by the American Bar Association and has historically drawn competitors from regional and national programs including National Moot Court Competition, Woolsack Moot Court Competition, Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, Roscoe Pound Legal Writing Competition, and university moot societies at institutions like Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, NYU School of Law, and Fordham University School of Law. Participation protocols coordinate with registrars and career services from schools such as Georgetown University Law Center, University of Pennsylvania Law School, Stanford Law School, and University of Chicago Law School. Teams often include students with prior clerkships or internships at entities including the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the Office of the Solicitor General of the United States, and nonprofit organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International.
The competition frequently frames problems around contemporary issues reflected in litigation before bodies like the Supreme Court of the United States and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, including matters related to constitutional law landmarks such as Roe v. Wade, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, Miranda v. Arizona, Gideon v. Wainwright, and statutory interpretation exemplified by cases like Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.. Past moot problems have engaged themes from disputes akin to New York Times Co. v. United States, Obergefell v. Hodges, District of Columbia v. Heller, Shelby County v. Holder, Bush v. Gore, Plessy v. Ferguson, and securities litigation reminiscent of Basic Inc. v. Levinson. Topics have spanned administrative law, civil rights, antitrust, intellectual property paralleling Apple Inc. v. Samsung Electronics Co., environmental regulation recalling Massachusetts v. Environmental Protection Agency, and international law echoes from The Hague Conventions and decisions of the International Court of Justice.
Winners receive honors and recognition from institutions such as the New York City Bar Association, American Bar Association, law firms like Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Cravath, Swaine & Moore, and academic departments at Columbia Law School, NYU School of Law, and Fordham University School of Law. Individual accolades have included best brief and best oralist awards that parallel recognitions from competitions like the Jessup Cup and accolades similar to prizes awarded by the Federal Bar Council, the New York State Bar Association, and legal foundations such as the Sullivan & Cromwell Foundation.
The competition is organized by the New York City Bar Association with sponsorship and logistical support from bar associations including the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Council, and law firms such as Sullivan & Cromwell, Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Debevoise & Plimpton, White & Case, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Kirkland & Ellis, and public interest partners like the Legal Aid Society and the ACLU. Host venues have included courts and institutions such as the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse, New York County Courthouse, and university auditoria at Columbia University and New York University.
The competition has influenced careers that led to clerkships at the Supreme Court of the United States, appointments to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, positions within the United States Department of Justice, roles at firms like Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Cravath, Swaine & Moore, and academic appointments at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Columbia Law School, and NYU School of Law. Its legacy connects to broader traditions in moot advocacy advanced by competitions such as the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition and the Bermuda Moot, and continues to shape appellate pedagogy and professional networks that intersect with institutions like the American Bar Association, the New York City Bar Association, and the federal judiciary.
Category:Moot court competitions