By Erin O’Dea

The 29 participants of the William H. Hastie Moot Court Competition have been hard at work finalizing their briefs and preparing for their oral arguments. Competitors have been dedicating their time familiarizing themselves with the closed universe problem since its release on October 2nd. This year, the Hastie Moot Court Competition takes up an issue that the past two decades have increasingly tied to broader questions of racial discrimination—namely, the extent of police officer discretion in conducting traffic stops.

 The William H. Hastie Moot Court Competition is an annual competition sponsored by the Law School’s Moot Court Board. The Moot Court Board is a student organization comprised of 41 students who have achieved distinction in appellate advocacy. The individual competition is one of the two annual opportunities students have to be admitted to the Moot Court Board. Subject to the quality of the competitors’ oral advocacy, the Moot Court Board hopes to admit more than eight students to the board from this competition.

 The preliminary rounds began on Monday, November 3rd and run until Friday, November 7th. In the preliminary rounds, each participant competes in two arguments, giving them the opportunity to advocate on behalf of both the petitioner and the respondent. The elimination rounds will follow, beginning on Monday, November 10th leading up to the final competition on Wednesday, November 12th. The final arguments will be in the Davis Courtroom at 7p.m., preceded by dinner at 6pm in the Starr Reading Room catered by Salute. Presiding over the final arguments and choosing the winner of the competition will be the Honorable Chief Judge Alexandra D. DiPentima of the Connecticut Appellate Court, the Honorable David M. Borden, Judge Trial Referee & Retired Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court and the Honorable Robert E. Beach, Jr., of the Connecticut Appellate Court. The final argument is open to the public and all are welcome to attend.

 The Connecticut Moot Court Board’s Intramural Director, Scott Garosshen, “promises the final argument will be an impressive performance. We hope to see you there!”