RALEIGH, N.C. – A team of Campbell Law student advocates finished as national semifinalists in their first ever competition this past weekend at the 2015 Lone Star Classic National Mock Trail Invitational Tournament in San Antonio, Texas. Third-year student Brittany Stiltner and second-year students Dutch Entwistle, Madison McLawhorn, and Gray Smith comprised one of just 16 teams from across the country invited to participate. Lauren Raynor, a 2012 Campbell Law graduate, served as the team coach.
Campbell Law has now finished as semifinalists in this competition for two consecutive years.
The competition problem involved a murder case against a defendant alleged to have killed her husband after he informed the defendant he was asking for a divorce. The defense claimed the shooting was in self-defense. Entwistle and McLawhorn represented the State, while Smith and Stiltner represented the defendant.
In the preliminary rounds, Campbell Law represented the defendant against American, the State against Georgia State, and the defendant again against Texas Southern. Following the preliminary rounds, Campbell Law was named as one of the four advancing semifinalists with a perfect 3-0 record. In the semifinal round, Campbell Law, representing the defense, was narrowly defeated by a team from Maryland, who ultimately won the overall championship. Throughout the competition the team was complimented by judges, faculty members, and other coaches for their preparedness, courtroom demeanor, and mastery of evidence and courtroom procedure.
“I am so incredibly proud of what this team accomplished,” said Raynor. “I knew from the beginning that my team was made up of four talented individuals, but talent is meaningless without hard work. This team worked tirelessly both during practice and outside of practice to prepare for this competition.”
ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW:
Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law School has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. 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 3,800 alumni, including more than 3,000 who reside and work in North Carolina. In September 2009, Campbell Law relocated to a state-of-the-art building in downtown Raleigh. For more information, visit http://law.campbell.edu.
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