Clark Competition Finals

This week was the premiere appellate advocacy competition at RWU: the finals of the Clark Competition (endowed in memory of a legendary teacher in our early days, Esther Clark).  The Clark Competition has come to mean at least two things: excellent student advocacy and a visit to campus by the entire Rhode Island Supreme Court to hear the arguments and decide the winner.

This year’s problem involved a complex mix of Fourth and Fifth Amendment issues arising out of a terrorist bombing of a building.  The finalists, 2Ls Tyler Smith and Kyle Rocha, were at the top of their game, handling a stream of tough questions from a very hot bench.  When the Court returned from its deliberations and announced its decision, I felt it could go either way and the Court’s comments suggested that they had a similarly tough time choosing between two stellar performances.  In the end, it was fitting that both competitors walked away winners: Kyle won the award for best brief and Tyler was crowned the overall champ.

Here is a picture of the Court and the competitors in our Appellate Courtroom: