School of Law to Host American Bar Association Regional Competition

Photo by Lucas Regnier

Law students Cody Johnson (left) and Anthony Marcon (right) prepare for American Bar Association Client Counseling Competition.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The American Bar Association selected the University of Arkansas School of Law as Region 10 host for its 2017-18 Client Counseling Competition. The regional rounds will be held Saturday, Feb. 3, in Waterman Hall on the U of A campus and will include teams from law schools in Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Oklahoma.

Third year law students Zachary Trail, Lucas Sheets and Creighton Light co-chaired the competition, with support from Board of Advocates executive committee members Brittany Ford, Caitlin Kenner and Jessica Boykin, and the board's third year membership. The Board of Advocates is a student-run organization in the law school that provides students with opportunities to enhance their public speaking and writing skills through practical experience in a variety of advocacy based competitions.

"We are proud of our tradition of deploying student leadership to manage many of the important aspects of the planning, preparation and execution of the competition," said Kathryn Sampson, director of competitions and capstone courses. 

The Client Counseling Competition simulates a law office consultation in which law students, acting as attorneys, are presented with a client matter. The 2017-18 topics are drawn from intentional torts.  Each school may register up to two teams, which consist of two students who attend the same law school. Generally, teams are chosen through an intraschool competition or tryout process.

Competitors conduct an interview with a person playing the role of the client. During the interview, attorneys elicit facts, advise about the relevant law, provide options for proceeding and assist the client in making an informed choice about next steps. Following the interview, the student attorneys consult each other regarding how the interview proceeded and develop their intended plan of action on behalf of the client.

The purpose of the competition is to promote greater knowledge and interest among law students in the preventive law and counseling functions of law practice and to encourage students to develop interviewing, planning and analytical skills in the lawyer-client relationship in the law office.

The American Bar Association Law Student Division has administered the competition since 1973, and approximately 100 U.S. and Canadian schools participate each year.  Conceived and developed as a legal teaching technique, it began on an interscholastic level in 1969 with two schools competing and has been held each year since.

Regional competitions generally occur in February and March. Each competition consists of three preliminary rounds, a semifinal round, and a final round. All teams compete in the first three preliminary rounds, which are conducted simultaneously. Six teams qualify for the semifinal round based on the number of points accumulated in the preliminary rounds. Three teams advance to the final round.  One team then advances to the National Finals, which will be held this year in Durham, North Carolina, in mid-March.

"We are excited to host this regional competition for the American Bar Association," Sampson said. "The U of A is one of only 12 schools chosen to host one of these regional events this year, and we are ready to share the beauty and hospitality of our campus with our guests." 

Law school competitions are highly dependent on local members of the bench and bar who donate their time to serve as judges, actors and other roles necessary for a successful simulation. The Feb. 3 event will include more than 70 volunteers from the legal and professional community, in addition to the coaches and contestants. The School of Law also depends on alumni and friends for annual internal competitions such as the William H. Sutton Barrister's Union Trial Competition, the Ben J. Altheimer Moot Court Competition and others.

In addition to hosting, U of A students are also competing. The team of third year student Anthony Marcon and second year student Cody Johnson and the team of third year law students Allen Franco and Son Nguyen will vie for a place in the national finals. The teams were coached by Hadley Hindmarsh and Lucas Regnier. Hindmarsh, a U of A alumna, owns Hindmarsh Law Firm in Rogers. She represents children in contested domestic relations matters. Regnier is a visiting assistant professor at the law school. He teaches contract drafting and legal analysis.