A first of its kind law school moot court competition will take place March 10th and 11th at the Dirkson Federal Courthouse in Chicago. The University of Illinois College of Law Anderson Center and the Seventh Circuit Bar Association will host the inaugural Anderson Center Seventh Circuit Moot Court Competition. Students from top law schools will compete by briefing and arguing an issue of legal ethics arising in a real-life complex litigation setting.

“We are pleased to provide this opportunity not only for our students but also for students from other law schools in the 7th Circuit – those in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin,” said Vikram Amar, Dean of the University of Illinois College of Law. “The profession has recognized a need for students to graduate with better practical training and this is a step toward doing that, with an emphasis on professionalism and ethics,” Amar added.

Kimball Anderson, the Competition’s co-chair commented, “We are excited to give law students throughout the Midwest the opportunity to argue before blue-ribbon panels of federal and state judges, and some of the top appellate practitioners in the country.”

This year’s competition includes teams from the University of Chicago Law School, the University of Illinois College of Law, the University of Illinois-Chicago School of Law, Indiana University McKinney School of Law, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, and the University of Wisconsin Law School. This is the only moot court competition focused on advocacy, professionalism, and ethics grounded in issues litigators actually face in a courtroom. 

The panel hearing the Championship argument will feature the Honorable Pamela Pepper, Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and the Honorable Jay Tharp of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, with the Honorable Thomas Kirsch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit presiding.

The Champion Team, as well as the winners of awards for best briefs and best argument, will be announced at a reception in the ceremonial courtroom on the afternoon of Saturday, March 11th.