IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law to participate in the 2013 ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition

Two teams from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law will participate in the 2013 ABA National Appellate Advocacy Regional Competition February 21 to 23 in St. Louis.

Sponsored by the American Bar Association's Law Student Division, the competition emphasizes students' written and oral advocacy skills. The students will argue a hypothetical federal appellate case related to false arrest, malicious prosecution and the Fourth Amendment. The top four teams from six regional tournaments will advance to the national finals April 4 to 6 in Chicago. (IIT Chicago-Kent students have won the region's best advocate award for two consecutive years.)

IIT Chicago-Kent students Dunstan Barnes '13, Colette Kopon '14 and David Starshak '14 will compete on one team. The other team will comprise students Esther Minell '14 and Ryan Moore '14.

Team member Dunstan Barnes is a third-year student who received an M.Eng. in materials science and metallurgy from the University of Oxford and a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge. Teammate Colette Kopon is a second-year student who earned an undergraduate degree in biological engineering at Cornell University. David Starshak, also a second-year student, graduated from Kansas State University with a bachelor of science degree in political science and a minor in leadership studies.

Team member Esther Minell is a second-year student who graduated from Bethel University with a double major in history and political science and a minor in philosophy. Teammate Ryan Moore, also a second-year student, earned an undergraduate degree in English with a minor in psychology at Marquette University.

Founded in 1888, IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law is celebrating "125 years of distinctive legal education." IIT Chicago-Kent is the law school of Illinois Institute of Technology, a private, Ph.D.-granting institution with programs in engineering, psychology, architecture, business, design and law. IIT Chicago-Kent is the only law school ever to win the National Trial Competition and the National Moot Court Competition in the same year (2008), and the first school in more than 30 years to win the National Moot Court Competition in two consecutive years (2008 and 2009).