Compete in mock trials and strengthen your advocacy skills
Brooklyn Law School’s Moot Court Honor Society is one of the most distinguished and accomplished moot court programs in the country. Students in the Trial Advocacy Division and the Appellate Advocacy Division compete in over thirty competitions across the United States and overseas. These competitions span all areas of the law, from family law to criminal procedure to constitutional law to international law. Year after year, students win individual awards for outstanding oral and written advocacy, as well as group awards for winning competitions and advancing to quarter-final, semi-final and final rounds.
In addition to providing students with substantial opportunities to strengthen their advocacy skills, Moot Court Honor Society provides ample opportunities for personal growth and leadership, including coaching and serving on the Executive Board. Further, members who are selected to serve on the Executive Board receive scholarship funding during the 3L/3P/4P year in which they hold a position on the Executive Board.
2022-2023 Executive Board and National Teams
Executive Board
President
Anjani Shah
Vice Presidents - Appellate Advocacy
Samantha Bellina
Anna Conte
Vice President - Trial Advocacy
Allyssa Myers
Prince Competition Coordinator
Lael Franco
Appellate Coordinator
Jillian Ingrisano
Trial Coordinator
Jo Dewey
Treasurer
Katana Meganck
Outreach Chair
Graeme Waples
Appellate Advocacy National Teams
NYC Bar Team
Christian Maloney
Jacqueline Zahn
ABA Nationals
Amanda D’Aniello
Leilani O’Sullivan
Vis International Arbitration Team
Samuel Caldarone
Xinyi Geng
Paige Massaker
Magdalin Pena
Alexia Seepersaud
Bernie Toledano
Trial Advocacy National Teams
American Association for Justice National Team
Caroline Donovan
Andrew Wilson
Rachel Bossuk
Elizabeth Lavelle
Texas Young Lawyers Association National Team
Julia Rubino
Eliana Sands
Faculty Advisor
Stacy Caplow
2022-2023 MCHS Members
Angela Anastasi
Benjamin Augugliaro
Rebecca Balmer
Emily Barsamian
Robert Berger
Kathrine Boyko
Huey Chan
Kelli Conway
Priyadarshini Das
Anthony DiMauro
Steven Dovi
Leah Elefante
Zane Elsisi
Peter Enia
Marissa Espinoza
Nicolle Feldman
Chloe Fishbein
Austin Fincher
Mickaela Fouad
Elisa Jastremski
Emily Joshi-Powell
Kayla Kershen
Lance Koranteng
Veronica Krass
Cassandra Lagana
Stephanie Lee
Elan Leftin
Shanni Lynch
Nicole Lynch
Benjamin Malone
Laura Medina
Phoebe Menaker
Stephanie Merkrebs
Grace Metushi
Matthew Mezeul
Sarah Mucha
Eamon O’Neill
Sydney Parks
Swathi Paruchuru
Jacqueline Perrotta
Arjun Reddy
Emily Reilly
Grecia Sequeira
Robert Stengel
Kristen Wallace
Carl Wu
Yi Yan
William Young
Kaicheng Yu
Regina Yu
Michael Ascher
Miriam Avrutin
Erin Azie
Devin Barbaro
Hannah Bretz
Rosalie Calvet-Soubiran
Tyler Carlin
Gabriel Clendenning
Marygrace Cole
Madison Colledge
Austen Fisher
Michael Futral
Jose Luis Gerez
Jami Gross
Deann Haight
Zackary Harris
Zoe Harrelson-Louie
Aurora Hermida
Jordan Hessinger
Braeden Hodges
Samantha Imber
Zachary Islam
Paulina Jedrzejowski
Benjamin Johnson
Marko Jukic
Margaret Kartsonis
Matthew Killip
Ashton Kittredge
Presley Klinger
Callie Kramsky
Shreya Krishnamurthy
Alexis Lamper
Meredith Leder
Rahmel Lee Robinson
Julie Leebove
Elizabeth Loizides
Ian Mauro
Matthew McDonough
Samantha Mintz-Agnello
Claire Miolene
Jimmy Nguyen
Caitlin Oakley
Giselle Omar
Sophia Overall
Jacob Pons
Michael Qian
Jack Ralph
Davis Rosser
Beatrice Rubin
Mathew Santoyo
Moriah Schindler
Lindsay Silverman
Matthew Sobel
Forrest Stakelum
Stephanie Stern
Brendan Sullivan
Haley Tobin
Jowel Uddin
Matthew Vance
Ashley Velasquez
Amy West
Nneka Wharton
Trial Advocacy Division
The Trial Advocacy Division of the Moot Court Honor Society invites all 1L/2P/3P students to participate in the Spring Trial Division Tryouts. From this competition, the Trial Division selects new members to join the Society and compete the following year in competitions around the country.
The Spring Trial Division Tryouts consists of two rounds. In each round, a student must deliver an opening statement and conduct the cross examination of a witness portrayed by a current member of the Society. Students are provided with a Trial Record approximately two weeks prior to the first round and are assigned to either the prosecution or the defense and assigned the witness they will cross-examine.
Current members of the Trial Advocacy Division judge students participating in the Spring Trial Division Tryouts. Judges look for competitors that manifest a basic familiarity with the content and purpose of an opening statement and cross-examination and who are able to advocate with confidence and conviction.
Chosen Society members demonstrate the fundamentals of opening statements and cross-examinations in a workshop prior to the competition. Students who participate in Spring Trial Division Tryouts but are either not invited to join the society or are placed on the waitlist may try-out again during the Summer of their 2L/3P year.
Appellate Advocacy Division
Members of the Appellate Division compete each year in numerous competitions throughout the country. These competitions give students the opportunity to hone both their research and writing skills.
Students work hard to research and produce written briefs on issues involving the subject area of law in which they will compete. They spend a number of weeks drafting their briefs, then engage in weeks of “practice rounds,” aided by their coaches and members of the Society, to perfect their oral argument skills. By the time the competition takes place, they have perfected their arguments on both sides of the issue.
Appellate competitions address a wide spectrum of subjects, ranging from family law to criminal procedure to constitutional law to international law. Our Appellate Division competitors have won competitions every year and often advance beyond preliminary rounds to the quarter-final, semi-final and final rounds of competition.
Appellate Division Membership
Members of the Moot Court Honor Society’s Appellate Division are selected primarily through a two-round competition held in the spring of their 1L/2P/3P year of law school. Students who are either not invited to join the Society or are placed on the waitlist during their 1L/2P/3P year may apply for membership again during the Summer of their 2L/3P year.
Jerome Prince Memorial Evidence Competition
Each year, Brooklyn Law School hosts the Dean Jerome Prince Memorial Evidence Competition. Named in honor of the late Dean and renowned evidence scholar, the competition draws over 30 law school teams from across the country to participate in an appellate competition addressing an issue at the forefront of evidence law. Members of the Moot Court Honor Society coordinate and facilitate the Prince Competition, and some students have an opportunity to work with faculty members to research and write the competition problem.
Willem C. Vis International Commerical Arbitration Moot
Brooklyn Law School is proud to send a team to the 30th Annual Vis Moot held in Vienna, Austria in April 2023. The purpose of the Vis Moot is to foster the study of international commercial law and arbitration and provide a practical training to students for resolving international business disputes. The team is comprised of third-year students from the Society, as well as unaffiliated students who have demonstrated excellence in requisite advocacy skills. Brooklyn Law School will host a practice demonstration for the public in the spring semester. Have questions or need additional information? Email the Brooklyn Law School Vis Team at brooklynlaw.vis@gmail.com.
Recent Moot Court Winners
Judge Paul Joseph Kelly, Jr. Invitational Trial Competition
Champions
John Rossler '22 & Josie Baldwin-Beneich '22
Best Overall Advocate, Final Round: Josie Baldwin-Beneich '22
Best Cross Examination, Preliminary Rounds: Josie Baldwin-Beneich '22
American Association for Justice (AAJ) Student Trial Advocacy Competition, Junior
Finalists, Regional Round
Andrew Wilson '23, Caroline Donovan '23, Maggie Peña '23, Jo Dewey '23
UC Davis Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights National Trial Competition
Semi-Finalists
Anjani Shah '23, Ellie Sands '23, Phoebe Menaker '23, Kathrine Boyko '23
Best Opening Statement, Preliminary Rounds: Anjani Shah '23
NYC Bar National Appellate Team II
Semi-Finalists
Marissa Cunha '22 & Cohl Love '22
American Association for Justice (AAJ) Student Trial Advocacy Competition, Senior
Semi-Finalists, Regional Round
Erica Baker '22, Marissa Cunha '22, Cohl Love '22, Allyssa Myers '23
Cardozo BMI Entertainment and Media Law Moot Court Competition
Quarter-Finalists and Best Brief Award
Anna Conte '23 & Newton Yu '23
Herbert Wechsler National Criminal Law Moot Court Competition
Quarter-Finalists
Graeme Waples '23 & Robert Berger '23
In Vino Veritas Golden Gate University Professor Bernie L. Segal National Trial Competition
Quarter-Finalists
Julia Rubino '23, Shanni Lynch '22, Priya Das '23, Kristen Wallace '22
Queens County District Attorney's Mock Trial Competition
Quarter-Finalists
Anjani Shah '23, Paige Massaker '23, Phoebe Menaker '23, Nicolle Feldman '23
Texas Young Lawyers Association National Trial Competition, Senior
Quarter-Finalists, Regional Round
John Rossler '22 & Josie Baldwin-Beneich '22
Texas Young Lawyers Association National Trial Competition, Junior
Quarter-Finalists, Regional Round
Julia Rubino '23 & Ellie Sands '23
Domenick L. Gabrielli National Family Law Moot Court Competition
Octo-Finalists
Mickaela Fouad '23 & Nicole Lynch '23
Best Oralist: Mickaela Fouad '23
NYU Immigration Law Competition
Octo-Finalists
Kelli Conway '23 & Grecia Sequeria '23
Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition
Octo-Finalists
Jillian Ingrisano '23 & Ben Augugliaro '23
Saul Lefkowitz Trademark Moot Competition
Best Brief Award and Advanced to National Rounds
Jacqueline Zahn '23 & Thia Paruchuru '23
Estrella National Trial Competition
Champions
John Rossler '22, Josephine Baldwin-Beneich '22, Jane Dowling '22, Jared Gershowitz '22
Saul Lefkowitz Trademark Moot Competition
Champion, Regional Rounds and Best Overall Brief Award
Jamie Rauch '22 & Caroline Peters '22
All Star Bracket Challenge
Semi-Finalists
John Rossler '22, Josephine Baldwin-Beneich '22, Francesca Esposito '22, Daniella Kolmykov '22
William B. Bryant-Luke C. Moore Civil Rights Moot Court Competition
Semi-Finalists
Thu Nguyen '22 & Jack Herrick '22
Irving R. Kaufman Memorial Securities Law Moot Court Competition
Semi-Finalists
Jara Jacobson '22 & Courtney Clark '21
Texas Young Lawyers Association National Trial Competition
Semi-Finalists, Regional Round
Taylor Schmidinger '21 & Andrew Ramstad '21
American Association for Justice (AAJ) Trial Advocacy Competition, Junior
Semi-Finalists, Regional Round
Alexa Ornelas '22, Bernadette Schneider '22, Ashlyn Dean '22, Eli Rios '22
Charleston Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition
Quarter-Finalists and Best Brief Award
Marissa Espinoza '22 & Laura Horvath-Roa '22
Cardozo BMI Entertainment and Media Law Moot Court Competition
Quarter-Finalists and Best Brief Award
Ariana Catarisano '22 & William Maier '22
NYC Bar National Appellate Team I
Quarter-Finalists
Sarah Colgan '21 & Michael Yoon '21
NYC Bar National Appellate Team II
Quarter-Finalists
Sarah Lavy '21 & Samuel Weinstein '21
Robert F. Wagner National Labor and Employment Law Moot Court Competition
Quarter-Finalists
Michelle Verkhoglaz '22 & Aidan Mulry '22
Willem C. Vis International Commerical Arbitration Moot Court
Advanced to Round of 64 and Best Oralist Honorable Mention Awards
Elise Lindenmayer '21, Kerry Hardman '21, Rene Macioce '21, Ashley Schilling '21
Judge Paul Joseph Kelly, Jr. Invitational Trial Competition
Best Cross Examination, Prelimary Rounds: Robert Austrian '22
National White Collar Crime Mock Trial Invitational Tournament (Georgetown)
Best Overall Advocate Honorable Mention, Prelimary Rounds: Eli Rios '22