May it please the court…

Moot Court!

Last night was my first moot court experience, and it was surprisingly fun.  My co-counsel and I argued our little hearts out (we’re still in our first year, so we haven’t yet completed the transformation into heartless lawyers) but to no avail.  The panel of judges (2 Baker Botts lawyers) decided the case in favor of our opponents.

I suppose the plus side is that it was obvious that we lost based entirely on the judges’ interpretation of the law and not on our presentation, because my partner was named best oral advocate and, in the judge’s words, “followed closely by [the old dawg].”  Even more encouraging was that I was told that my delivery style was perfectly suited for trial court and they felt I would be very effective in that setting.  (Conversational, warm, make-you-feel-like-my-buddy, style.)  Since I hope to be a litigator, that was good news, even if they preferred my partner’s more rapid-fire, matter-of-fact delivery for the appellate proceedings.

Even though we lost the case, it’s nice to know that we looked good doing it!

Now it’s time to dive deep into finals prep.  See you in a few weeks!