RALEIGH — Campbell Law School Dean J. Rich Leonard welcomed trial teams on Friday from virtually every law school in North Carolina, South Carolina and Southern Virginia to the 48th annual National Trial Competition (NTC) – Region V annual tournament.
The tournament, which runs from Feb. 17-19, 2023, is being hosted at the Wake County Courthouse on Friday and Saturday and the law school’s Boyce Advocacy Center on Sunday afternoon.
The tournament is sponsored by Ward and Smith PA, Poyner Spruill LLP and Hutchens law firms.
Teams from the following law schools are competing to go to the national finals set for March 29-April 2 in San Antonio:
- University of South Carolina
- William & Mary
- Wake Forest University
- University of North Carolina
- Elon University
- Duke University
- Campbell University
- North Carolina Central University
- Richmond University
NTC is unique in that teams must direct and cross witnesses they have not worked with extensively prior to trial, Campbell Law Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Dan Tilly, who is the interim Director of Competitive Advocacy, told the teams’ coaches at their welcome meeting on Friday.
“The goal of the NTC is to provide student advocates with witnesses that more closely resemble what they may experience in a real trial,” he said. “We hope to provide student advocates with that same experience as well throughout this competition.”
In an effort to thank the large number of volunteers needed for the competition, volunteer judges are eligible to receive one hour of CLE credit from the North Carolina Bar for each volunteer hour as a judge for up to 12.5 CLE credits, said Campbell Law’s Wallace Leadership Fellow Jamie Bellomy.
The National Trial Competition (NTC) 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 (ACTL) and is designed to expose law students to the nature of trial practice and to serve as a supplement to their education. It is the Texas Young Lawyers Association (TYLA) intent to provide a meaningful contribution to the development of future trial lawyers.
TYLA administers the competition, which attracts teams from more than 140 law schools and involves more than 1,000 law students each year.
The Kraft W. Eidman Award is presented by the American College of Trial Lawyers, and consists of $10,000 to the winning school and a plaque to each member of the winning team. This very generous contribution is endowed by Fulbright & Jaworski. Beck Redden LLP presents a $5,000 award to the second place team, and each semifinalist team is awarded $1,500 by Polsinelli PC. The Best Advocate Award is awarded the George A. Spiegelberg Award, donated by Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. The Hon. Lewis F. Powell medallion is presented annually to each regional finalist in the National Trial Competition, as a tribute to the accomplishments of those individuals.
For more information, please email Bellomy at jbellomy@campbell.edu.
ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW SCHOOL
Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion, and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. Among its accolades, the school has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation’s top Professionalism Program and by the American Academy of Trial Lawyers for having the nation’s best Trial Advocacy Program. Campbell Law boasts more than 4,700 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2024, Campbell Law will celebrate 45 years of graduating legal leaders and a 15 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Capital City.