UA School of Law Students Win Trial Competition

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. —  Defendant Gregory Hamilton was charged with first-degree murder for allegedly bludgeoning Cynthia Stone, wrapping her body in a rug and dumping her in the Gulf of Mexico.

Fortunately for Mr. Hamilton, his defense was led by third-year law students Sach Oliver and Clarke Tucker, winners of the 2005 William H. Sutton Barristers’ Union Trial Competition on Oct. 7 at the University of Arkansas School of Law. And fortunately for the deceased Ms. Stone, this mock-trial competition and its subsequent details were fabricated with the intent of teaching future lawyers, among other things, the process of trial law.

“This annual competition requires students to master law, understand the role of evidence and communicate to jurors,” said Michael Mullane, professor and director of the School of Law Legal Clinic. As one of two faculty mentors for this competition, Mullane described the competition as “extremely tough” this year.

“There weren’t just a few strong teams,” he said. “It was a horse race to the very end.”

Looking at these students’ achievements, it’s no surprise that the two led the competition.

Oliver, who was named after Satchel Paige, the first African-American baseball pitcher in the American League, attended Arkansas State University on a rodeo scholarship, although he talks more about his fellow students’ endeavors than his own. As student government president at Arkansas State University, he worked primarily on diversity issues, trying to make a difference for other students.

“Sach is an excellent leader and one of the best student government presidents we’ve ever had,” said Glen Jones, assistant to the president at Arkansas State University and alumnus of the UA School of Law. “He’s passionate, articulate, professional — just a great guy.”

Oliver currently works at Bailey Law Firm in Bentonville, where he will be employed after his graduation in May.

His boss Frank Bailey said, “Sach has the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln and the common sense of Will Rogers. He is going to be a great trial lawyer.”

Oliver currently chairs the Board of Advocates, “a student-run organization that conducts, organizes and sponsors competitions both within and outside of the School of Law,” according to interim dean Howard Brill.

“The Board of Advocates is training lawyers like Sach and Clarke for the next generation,” Brill said.

However, Oliver will tell you that part of being a trial lawyer is plain luck.

“Clarke and I were lucky enough to win a coin toss to choose whether we wanted to represent the prosecution or the defense. Not everyone in this competition had that kind of luck,” Oliver said.

Tucker’s achievements, however, can’t be 100 percent luck. A 2003 graduate of Harvard University, Tucker currently serves as editor-in-chief of the University of Arkansas Law Review, a quarterly journal published by law students in cooperation with the Arkansas Bar Association. His recent edition has tributes from Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, former President Clinton and Justice Antonin Scalia, just to name a few.

Tucker interned at the White House Counsel’s Office, worked on the 2002 Arkansas Democratic Campaign and with Congressman Vic Snyder, and like his roommate Oliver, Tucker calls himself the luckiest person in the world.

“There’s nothing as good as Arkansas,” he said, “which is why I came back here to live and practice.”

When he graduates, Tucker will clerk for federal judge Leon Holmes in the eastern district of Arkansas.

“Competition is fun, but there’s nothing like competing with someone who’s like a brother,” Tucker said of his teammate and roommate Oliver.

This year’s competition was judged by William H. “Buddy” Sutton, former managing partner of Friday, Eldredge & Clark and partial sponsor of this competition; the Honorable Judge Mary Ann Gunn of the 4th District Circuit Court; and Walter Cox, principal of Cox Law Firm in Fayetteville.

“Not only have we been lucky to have such prestigious judges,” Oliver said, “but we’ve also had phenomenal chairs for each competition.”

He was speaking of third-year Board of Advocates’ chair Darryl Spinks, who organized and led the competition this year. He also thanked the generous support of Sutton and the other law alumni whose generous support contributed to this competition: Bobby Lee Odom, Don R. Elliott Jr., Russell B. Winburn, J. Timothy Smith and Conrad T. Odom.

And it’s this type of support, camaraderie and friendly competition, Oliver said, that make their experience at the School of Law memorable.