RALEIGH – Campbell Law School is once again taking its award-winning Trial Advocacy Training Program abroad over Spring Break, this time to South Africa.
“Campbell Law is proud to announce an international partnership with the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa, bringing our nationally recognized trial advocacy training program to law students abroad,” said Professor Chris Cox, director of the law school’s Trial Advocacy Program.
From March 9-13, Campbell Law’s Dean J. Rich Leonard and Assistant Professor Erin Kenny will work alongside University of the Free State colleagues to train approximately 12 students in the essential skills of courtroom advocacy.
The training is part of Leonard’s Global Initiatives Program, which also includes four study abroad programs and will for the first time this summer offer externship opportunities in several African courts in Rwanda, Namibia and Ghana thanks to a generous donation by Robert Zaytoun.
The intensive program at the University of the Free State mimics how a trial advocacy performance section is taught at Campbell Law. It will cover opening statements, direct and cross-examination of witness testimony and closing arguments, with curriculum tailored to South Africa’s bench trial system, Cox explained.
“The week will culminate in a capstone exercise where students will represent parties in a simulated civil trial before a presiding judge,” he said. “This collaboration reflects Campbell Law School’s commitment to advancing legal education and building connections with legal institutions around the world.”
Joining the program in South Africa will be alumnae Kimberly Dixon ‘15 and Tatiana Terry ‘19, both of whom have coached Campbell Law trial advocacy teams. Dixon has coached a number of winning Campbell Law advocacy teams including the NBLSA National Championship in 2019 and The All-Star Bracket Challenge in 2021. Terry, who was the winner of Baylor Law School’s 2019 Top Gun National Mock Trial Competition and an international and several national trial advocacy championships, has since coached a number of trial ad teams as well as Top Gun competitors.
Last spring, Campbell Law partnered with the University of Cape Coast (UCC) Law Faculty in Ghana to host its first-ever advocacy training workshop in Africa. This initiative, known formally as the Advocacy Training Institute for Ghanaian lawyers and students and coordinated by UCC Professor Constantine Kudzedzi, brought together some final-year students and newly trained lawyers for a three-day workshop facilitated by Campbell Law faculty and alumni.
“We’re continuing to take the Campbell Law brand international,” Leonard added.
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 5,000 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2026, Campbell Law is celebrating 50 years of graduating legal leaders and 17 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Capital City.
ABOUT UNIVERSITY OF THE FREE STATE
University of The Free State was created in 1904. It has a history of being one of the oldest, most respected institutions of higher education in South Africa. Currently, it is a multi-campus institution, with two diverse campuses, one in Bloemfontein and the other in Qwaqwa. The institution is unique with its holistic student support initiatives, as well as an established network of industry partners and close collaboration with the public and private sectors. The values of the university include excellence, impact, sustainability, care, social justice, and accountability. For the past 121 years, the institution has stayed relevant in the national higher education landscape.