Corey Tallent and Monica Gutowski were winners in the first Trifecta Competition hosted by The John Marshall Law School Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution in July 2011.
The Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution hosted 16 outstanding second- and third-year students for an intra-squad Trial Team Trifecta Competition this summer. The students will go on to represent The John Marshall Law School in major trial competitions during the 2011-2012 academic year.
The summer program opened with specially-designed two-week workshops that offered students tips on opening and closing statements and evidence.
The Trifecta was held the weekend of July 15. The 16 students broke in to 4 trial teams to conduct a murder trial. The case was argued three times as teams were eliminated. The top two winners were third-year student Corey Tallent and third-year student Monica Gutowski. As winners, they were allowed to choose the competition they wanted to participate in and both chose the National Trial Advocacy Competition (NTAC) at Lansing, Mich., in September. Their names also will be engraved on the perennial trophy to be awarded and engraved after each summer competition.
The other participants will fill out teams to represent the law school at the NTAC, at the Buffalo-Niagara Trial Competition and at the Georgetown White-Collar Crime Mock Trial Invitational Competition.
Students who participated in the Trifecta also may be alternates to these teams and can try out for additional fall 2011 teams.
The competition also allowed 1L students to shadow the participants and participate when necessary.
“I’m excited by the level of interest, and by the outcome. We will be sending outstanding teams to competitions this fall,” said Clinical Professor Susann MacLachlan, director of the Center.