3L students Emma Taylor and Christopher Frey WIN the Hicks Thomas LLP Moot Court National Championship

For the first time in Interscholastic Moot Court Board history, 3L students Emma Taylor and Christopher Frey WIN the Hicks Thomas LLP Moot Court National Championship on behalf of Seton Hall University School of Law!

Widely recognized as one of the most prestigious moot court invitational competitions in the country, the Championship invites the Top 16 law school moot court programs in the country to compete to be a National Champion. This year's event took place January 23–25, 2025 at the Bob Casey United States Courthouse in Houston, with three days of extraordinary legal argument and collaboration. Participants engaged with distinguished judges, practitioners, and fellow students, and gained invaluable insights into  real-world legal practice.

Seton Hall saw rounds against SMU Dedman, Baylor Law School, George Washington, Michigan State, Loyola Chicago, and NYU  before defeating Liberty in the Final Round. This year, the final round judges were Hon. Jennifer Walker Elrod (Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit), Hon. James E. Graves, Jr. (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit), and Hon. Scott A. Brister (Chief Justice, Fifteenth Court of Appeals).  The team also won the Best Brief award.

Emma Taylor ‘25 recommends students participate in moot court because of the opportunity to meet people through Seton Hall’s Interscholastic Moot Court Board, and to build connections that span far beyond law school. “This program has taught me to trust myself and has made me confident in my skills as a future lawyer. I have learned so many things from this competition and from my time on the Interscholastic Moot Court Board, but the most important lesson is that hard work pays off. If you are given the opportunity to participate in a moot court competition, do it. Who knows, maybe you’ll end up as a National Champion in a few years!”

Christoper Frey ‘25 reflects, “Our team worked tirelessly since the competition materials released in October, but you never really know what’s going to happen when the competition arrives. I was proud of the way Emma and I performed day-in-day-out, especially during the finals where the judges did not hold back with their questioning. There are so many reasons to participate in moot court, but the main one is that you will leave law school a much more effective speaker and writer. Whether you are interested in litigation or corporate law, you will at some point have to persuasively distill the law into digestible points while directly answering questions from supervisors, adversaries, and other interested parties.”

A special thank you to Seton Hall alum and former Board members Ashleigh Lewis, Esq. and Jonathan Weisbrod, Esq. for their dedication to this team and incredible coaching, as well as to Professor Jodi Anne Hudson for her support and expertise!