Each year the college sends one team to compete in the Pace National Environmental Moot Court, held at Pace Law School in White Plains, New York.
The Pace Competition is recognized as the preeminent environmental law moot court in the United States, testing skills in appellate brief writing and oral advocacy on issues drawn from real environmental cases. The competition draws more than 200 law students (approximately 78 teams) from across the nation. Up to 200 attorneys serve as judges for the three days of oral arguments. Each argument features three adverse sides - the government, a public interest group, and a regulated industry - reflecting the fact that environmental litigation frequently involves multiple parties.
Coach / Faculty Contact
Professor Kirsten Engel
Phone: (520) 621-5444
Email Kirsten Engel
Prerequisites
Any 2L or 3L in good academic standing is eligible to compete for a slot on Arizona Law's National Environmental Law Moot Court Team. To be in good standing, a student must not be on probation or under scrutiny for academic or any other misconduct. There are no course prerequisites.
Recommended Courses
Advanced Legal Writing
Team Selection
The three team members are selected through an internal competition at the College of Law. Interested students must sign up for and participate in try-outs held sometime between mid-September and early October. Professor Engel will send out an email in late August or early September seeking interested students. Try-outs consist of a short oral argument based upon briefs distributed to the student competitors in advance.
Competition Timeline
(Check the competition website for exact dates.)
- Registration Deadline: late September
- Problem distributed: early October
- Briefs due: late November
- Oral arguments in White Plains, New York: late February
Academic Credit
None
Meetings
Team members meet with professor at least once a week, but will be expected to meet additional times, including weekends, on an as-needed basis. Meetings will involve a combination of instruction, discussion, and practice.
Expenses
Students are responsible for payment of their own travel and lodging costs. The law school is not responsible for the payment of any of these costs. In past years, students have covered virtually all travel costs through grants from the Graduate and Professional Student Council, the Associated Students of The University of Arizona, and the Student Bar Association.