Law School Students Win Regional Trial Competition, Advance to Nationals

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From the left: Courtney Brooks, Kristina Ranney Wallace, Harrison Howle and Jose Ruiz

Harrison Howle and Kristina Ranney Wallace, students at the U of A School of Law, composed one of two teams crowned as winners of the 2023 National Trial Competition Regional Tournament for Region 11. This year's competition was hosted by Texas A & M School of Law and was held at the Tom Vandergriff Civil Courts Building in Fort Worth Feb. 11-12. Howle, a second-year student from Memphis, Tennessee, and Wallace, a third-year student from Cincinnati, Ohio, advance to the National Trial Competition scheduled for March 29 through April 2 in San Antonio. 

"The trial competition required a bitter fight to the very end," Howle said. "We ultimately prevailed because we implemented the advice of our coaches." The team defeated a team from Texas Tech University School of Law in the final round and was coached throughout the tournament by School of Law alumni Courtney Brooks (J.D. '20) and Jose Ruiz (J.D. '19).   

This year, the School of Law sent two teams to the regional competition in the hope of continuing last year's success of reaching the 2022 semifinals. Team One was composed of Carson Henderson and Hayley Harris, and Team Two was composed of Howle and Wallace.  "Carson and Harris had a successful tournament and were only one point away from reaching the playoffs," Ruiz said.   

The regional qualifier consists of 15 different regions and attracts teams from 140 law schools. More than 1,000 law students compete. The top two teams from each region are identified as regional champions and qualify for the National Trial Competition. The success of the U of A team places the U of A School of Law among one of the top 30 law school teams in the nation. 

"Coach Ruiz and I are extremely proud of every single member who competed in the regionals," Brooks said. "A special thanks to everyone that helped us throughout the season—especially the volunteers who played witnesses for the tournament: students Beth Michau and Savannah Luna, and alumna Kelli Albrecht (J.D. '20)."  

The National Trial Competition was established in 1975 to encourage and strengthen the advocacy skills of law students through quality competition and valuable interaction with members of the bench and bar. The program is co-sponsored by the American College of Trial Lawyers and the Texas Young Lawyers Association.