Law School Mock Trial Team Headed for Nationals in Texas

A mock trial team from the Law School bested 22 other teams in regional competition to earn a trip to the finals of the prestigious Texas Young Lawyers Association National Trial Competition. The regional event, one of 14 held around the country, took place Feb. 9-11 in Fargo, North Dakota. The Law School’s regional champion team will next be competing April 4-8 at the TYLA Nationals in Austin, Texas, where they will face off against teams from the best trial advocacy programs in the country. This is the third time in the past six years that a Law School team has qualified for the national finals of the TYLA mock trial event.

The winning team members are Phillip Guebert, Kareem Tawfic, and Joe Janochoski, all members of the 3L class. They defeated teams from the University of Wisconsin, University of South Dakota, Washburn University, University of North Dakota, and University of Iowa. The second University of Minnesota team—3Ls Mike Sikora and Rachel Cardwell and 2L Deanna Thompson—also had a very strong regional showing, finishing in fifth place following victories against the University of South Dakota, University of North Dakota, and Creighton University. A third team from the Law School, consisting of Max Hall (3L), Adam Setra (3L), and Frances Fink (2L), was able to participate under noncompeting “bye” status because the regional bracket contained an odd number of schools. They defeated the University of St. Thomas in their only round. All three teams are coached by Craig Buske ’10, Craig Roen ’87, and Jared Reams ’13.

The TYLA National Trial Competition is the largest mock trial competition in the nation, attracting teams from more than 140 law schools and involving more than 1,000 law students each year. It was established in 1975 to encourage and strengthen students' advocacy skills through quality competition and valuable interaction with members of the bench and bar. The program is co-sponsored by the American College of Trial Lawyers.