Lawyering competitions: negotiators and court room advocates

Robson Hall, Faculty of Law has had a particularly exciting mooting season this year. Twenty-eight students participated in a diverse range of events, involving a range of dispute resolution approaches and varied areas of private and public law. A complete listing of all events, students and coaches is set out below. The Faculty wishes to recognize the outstanding work of all of the students and coaches. Each Robson Hall team did us proud. Also exciting, of course, were the wins and other top honours our teams received.

In November 2014, 32 students from seven different law schools competed at the American Bar Association Regional competition, where our two Robson Hall teams came out on top. Heather Wadsworth and Andrew Torbiak tied for first place with Shimon Leibl and Andrew Slough. Leibl and Slough went on to place first in a tiebreaker round. The teams, with the support of their coaches, Michael Weinstein and Steven Meltzer, then competed in the American Bar Association National competition where Leibl and Slough again placed first against 190 other teams! They will go on to compete in the International competition in Dublin, Ireland in July 2015.

At the MacIntyre Cup (Western Canada’s Trial Moot Competition) held in February of this year, team Manitoba, consisting of Zachary Courtemanche and Anthony Foderaro along with their coaches, the Honourable Justice Richard Saull and Judy Kliewer of the Federal Department of Justice Prosecutions Services, placed first. The team then represented Western Canada at the Sopinka Cup, where they placed third overall in the country.

In March 2015, Kevin Mehi and Hilary Taylor won Best Factum at the Walsh Family Law Moot, with the guidance of their coaches Katelyn Clarke and Lawrence Pinsky, both of Taylor McCaffrey LLP, and invaluable collaboration from teammates Jena Colpitts and Nicole Drayton.

The Faculty could not offer this experience to students without the wonderful support we receive from the legal community and we truly appreciate it. An incredible group of coaches from the faculty, bar and bench support the students every step of the way. Many other members of the legal community give their time to explain complex areas of the law, review written briefs or act as practice judges. Current and retired members of the legal community also provide financial support for the mooting program each year.  On behalf of the students, staff and faculty at Robson Hall, thank you!

*American Bar Association Regional Negotiation Competition
Date/Location: November 1-2, 2014 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Teams: Shimon Leibl and Andrew Slough; Andrew Torbiak and Heather Wadsworth
Coaches: Michael Weinstein (partner at Hill Sokalski Walsh Olsen LLP) and Steven Meltzer (Duboff Edwards Haight & Schachter LLP)

*American Bar Association National Negotiation Competition
Date/Location: February 6-9, 2015 in Houston, Texas
Teams: Shimon Leibl and Andrew Slough; Andrew Torbiak and Heather Wadsworth
Coaches: Michael Weinstein (partner at Hill Sokalsi Walsh Olsen LLP), Professor Vivian Hilder and Professor John Pozios
Donor support from The Marcel A. Desautels Centre for Private Enterprise and the Law

Davies Corporate Securities Law Moot
Date/Location: March 6-7, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario
Team: Lane Foster, Miranda Grayson, Alex Leaver and Crystal Schwartz
Coaches: Ari Hanson (with assistance from Beth Eva, both with Fillmore Riley LLP), Professor Darcy MacPherson and Professor John Pozios
Donor support from Robert and Deirdre Kozminski

* Harold G. Fox Moot (Intellectual Property)
Date/Location: February 20-21, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario
Team: Daniel Booy, Dana Gregoire, Aaron Kurts and Anna Solmundson
Coaches: Michael Jason (Richardson International Limited), John Myers (Taylor McCaffrey LLP) and Professor Adriane Porcin

*Lenczner Slaght/CBA Gale Cup Moot (Criminal/Constitutional)
Date/Location: February 21, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario
Team: Zoe Abreder, Jonathon Avey, Erika Day and Adam Gingera
Coaches: Georgia Couturier and Ami Kotler (both from Manitoba Justice, Prosecutions) and Professor Debra Parkes

*Kawaskimhon Moot (Indigenous Values and Concepts of Dispute Resolution)
Date/Location: March 6-8, 2015 in Fredericton, New Brunswick
Team: Jessica Barlow and Terrance Delaronde
Coaches: Wendy Whitecloud (Director, Academic Support Program, Robson Hall) and Professor Brenda Gunn

*Laskin Moot (Canadian Constitutional and Administrative Law)
Date/Location: March 6-7, 2015 in Montreal, Quebec
Team: Stephanie Chan, Gabrielle Lisi, Josh Morry and Grant Purves
Coaches: Professor Aimée Craft; Denis Guénette (Civil Legal Services, Manitoba Justice), Joël Guénette and Joëlle Pastora Sala (Public Interest Law Centre)

MacIntyre Cup
Date/Location: February 6-7, 2015 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Team: Zachary Courtemanche and Anthony Foderaro
Coaches: The Honourable Justice Richard Saull and Judy Kliewer (Federal Department of Justice Prosecutions Services)
Donor support from Hill Sokalski Walsh Olson LLP

Sopinka Cup
Date/Location: March 13-14, 2015 in Ottawa, Ontario
Team: Zachary Courtemanche and Anthony Foderaro
Coaches: The Honourable Justice Richard Saull and Judy Kliewer (Federal Department of Justice Prosecutions Services)
Donor support from Hill Sokalski Walsh Olson LLP

*Walsh Family Law Moot
Date/Location: March 14, 2015 in Toronto, Ontario
Team: Jena Colpitts, Nicole Drayton, Kevin Mehi and Hilary Taylor
Coaches: Katelyn Clarke and Lawrence Pinsky (Taylor McCaffrey LL.P.) and Associate Dean Lisa Fainstein

The faculty thanks all of our donors for their support, allowing our students to participate in the exceptional learning opportunities provided by moot competition. If you are interested in supporting any of the moots marked with an asterisk, please contact Dean Lorna Turnbull at Lorna.Turnbull@umanitoba.ca.

UM Today Staff