3/2/03

3/1/2003 BARTLIT CENTER TRIAL TEAM WINS REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

Northwestern's 2003 Bartlit Center Trial Team won the Regional Championship in the Association of Trial Lawyers of American (ATLA) Mock Trial Competition, which took place in Chicago, March 1-2, 2003. They surpassed teams from Wayne State University, Northern Illinois University, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Loyola University, the John Marshall Law School (semi-final round), and the University of Illinois College of Law (final round).

Students on the winning team are Melissa Goodwin ’04, Kristy Mace ’03, Kathryn Starnella ’04, and Pete Surdo ’04. Their success was made possible by the hard-working members of the other Bartlit Center team of Kael Duprey ’03, Tyree Givens ’04, Lena Goretsky ’03, and Gabriel Reilly-Bates ’03, who narrowly missed making the semi-finals.

The trial team will next travel to New Orleans for the National ATLA Trial Competition, which will take place March 20-23. Melissa, Kristy, Kathryn and Pete will compete against 14 other regional champions from across the country.

The coaches of the Bartlit Center Trial Team are: Sean Gallagher, Chris Landgraff, Chris Lind, Jill Trumbull-Harris, and Rebecca Weinstein Bacon all of Bartlit Beck Palenchar & Scott, and Nate Diamond-Falk (a long-time stalwart of the ITA program).

The Bartlit Center Trial Team is named after the Fred Bartlit Center for Trial Strategy, established at the law school in 1999 by a gift from the lawyers of Bartlit Beck Herman Palenchar & Scott (www.bartlit-beck.com).

Tryouts for the 2004 Bartlit Center Trial Team will be held in October 2003.