Baylor's 'A-Team' Wins State Moot Court Contest

by Alan Hunt

Three Baylor University law students-all women with first names beginning with the letter A-won the Texas Young Lawyers Association Moot Court Competition held in conjunction with the recent Texas State Bar Convention in Fort Worth.
Amy O'Malley of Brenham, Amber Slayton of Carthage, and Ashlea Vogler of Oklahoma City, represented Baylor in the contest, which attracted teams from eight Texas law schools. Team coach, adjunct professor Kathy Serr, said she dubbed the trio Baylor's "A-Team." She added, "They really came through in grand fashion. We had a good day."
The moot court contest centered around a criminal problem involving arrest without a warrant, along with a second issue involving the procedure for challenging the voluntary nature of a guilty plea.
Baylor's team beat a team from Southern Methodist University in the semifinal after a 5-0 decision from the judges, who were from the Dallas and Fort Worth Courts of Appeals. In the final, Baylor beat South Texas College of Law following a 9-0 verdict from justices of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals who judged the round. Baylor's brief was selected third-best brief in the contest.
Brad Toben, Baylor law dean, said the win represented a prestigious victory in a high-profile statewide contest. "Many of those in attendance at the competition noted that they had never before seen a team so thoroughly dominate a competition. And they did just that," he said.