11/25/09--Boston College Law School's National Moot Court Team has advanced to the National Championship Rounds in New York City in the Sixtieth Annual National Moot Court Competition, sponsored by the American College of Trial Lawyers and the Bar of the City of New York. The New England Regional Rounds were held this weekend at Boston University School of Law with eight schools competing: BC Law, BU law, Quinnipiac, Roger Williams, Suffolk, Syracuse, Vermont, and Western New England.

"Team members Lauren Schreur, Anna Evans, and Sean Collier all performed magnificently," said Team Co-Advisor Thomas Carey. "We appreciate their contributions to the tradition of excellence that is the hallmark of our advocacy teams and the many outstanding advocates who have graduated from BC Law.
The team and their coaches would like to thank faculty, alumni, and other friends who helped prepare them for the arguments."

Schreur, the swing oralist, argued both sides of the issue of what legal standard governs change of venue motions under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, the Sixth Amendment, and the Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution. Evans and Collier split the argument on the issue of whether sentencing a juvenile to life in prison without parole constitutes cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the Eighth Amendment, with Collier arguing for the government and Evans arguing for the defendant.   

The BC Law team defeated Roger Williams, Quinnipiac and BU in advancing to the finals against Syracuse, before being defeated by a tenth of a point margin. Both finalists advance to the National Championship Rounds in New York, in which only the top 28 law schools from regional competitions throughout the country are allowed to compete.