The American Moot Court Association was so impressed with the professionalism and hospitality shown by LSU Law as the host site of its National Tournament earlier this month that the AMCA has committed to bringing the nation’s largest intercollegiate moot court competition back to the Paul M. Hebert Center again in the future.

“It was a terrific tournament, and we couldn’t have asked for a better host than LSU Law, which really went above and beyond to provide us with a warm welcome, fantastic facilities, and great judges,” said AMCA President Mike Walsh. “I’m very happy to say that LSU Law will definitely be among our permanent host sites of the tournament going forward.”

Eighty teams of undergraduate college students from across the country converged at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center on Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 14-15, to compete in the AMCA National Tournament, which was won by a team from Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Virginia. Each of the 80 teams in the competition included two students, and all earned their invitation to the AMCA National Tournament by successfully advancing through regional competitions held throughout the U.S. that included more than 500 teams.

“We were honored to host the AMCA National Tournament and all of the incredible students who competed in it, and we couldn’t have possibly done it without the dozens of attorneys who volunteered and served as judges, most of whom are LSU Law alumni,” said LSU Law Professor Jeff Brooks, who serves as moot court and trial advocacy program director. “We appreciate all the volunteer judges who helped make the tournament a success, we are thrilled that the AMCA has decided to bring it back to LSU Law, and we will be honored to host them again in the future.”

LSU Law Professor Jack Harrison was honored with the prestigious Lucy McGough Juvenile Justice Award at the 35th Annual Justice Albert Tate, Jr. Awards Banquet in New Orleans on Dec. 9, 2022. Presented by the Louisiana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the award recognizes Harrison’s “involvement with juvenile justice issues that affect our justice systems daily.”

“The award means a great deal to me, as it recognizes the great worth of juvenile advocacy,” Harrison said. “In accepting the award, my thoughts immediately went to my colleagues in the juvenile justice system.”

Harrison has dedicated his career to advocating for and working on behalf of juveniles in the justice system. After graduating from LSU Law in 2004, he spent 14 years as a juvenile defender for the East Baton Rouge Office of the Public Defender. Prior to being appointed a full-time faculty member at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center in the clinical legal education program in 2021, Harrison had served as an adjunct professor at LSU Law since 2009.

“Juvenile justice has been elevated to its rightful place as an equal part of the criminal justice system by the hard work and dedication of attorneys like Jack Harrison,” the LACDL said in a statement announcing the award.

Along with Harrison, LSU Law alumna Betty Marak (’87) was honored by the LACDL with the Public Defender Gideon Award “for her dedicated work to representing indigents for years which gives meaning to our constitution everyday by giving the 6th amendment right to counsel true effect.”

Sixty LSU Law students have been named Paul M. Hebert Scholars for their academic achievement in the Fall 2022 semester and 89 have been named Dean’s Scholars.

The Paul M. Hebert Scholar is awarded to the top 10% of LSU Law students earning 12 or more semester hours of credit in courses taken during an individual semester, and the Dean’s Scholar is awarded to the top 25% of students who earn at least 12 hours of credit during an individual semester. The awards are noted on students’ transcripts.

See a listing of students who earned academic honors in the Fall 2022 semester »

Roughly 110 years since female students first enrolled at LSU Law, women now account for half of the student body at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center. The Women Law Students Association at LSU Law strives to bring together women of diverse backgrounds and help them grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking, support, and recognition.

“WLSA is such an important organization to have on campus, especially right now,” said 3L and WLSA President Lindsey Tizzard. “Even with the high percentage of women at LSU Law, the legal field is still predominately male, and we want to give each woman at LSU Law a place and help them succeed.”

WLSA hosts academic events and social activities throughout the school year to give students a break from their busy schedules and strengthen the community of women at LSU Law. In the fall semester, WLSA hosted a bowling night, a screening of “Legally Blonde,” a trivia night with the WLSA chapter from the Southern University Law Center, and a panel of women in the legal profession who offered career advice and insight. This semester, Tizzard said WLSA plans to facilitate a tour of the Law Center for local middle schoolers “to show girls that they can become lawyers, too.”

LSU Law students will volunteer at Baton Rouge area nonprofit organizations, animal shelters, attractions, and other locations on Saturday, Feb. 4, as part of the Spring Day of Service organized by the Public Interest Law Society and Student Bar Association.

“Our goal is to have at least 130 volunteers at the sites,” said PILS President and 3L Madeline Meyer.

If PILS and SBA reach their goal, the Spring Day of Service could be even more successful than the Fall Day of Service on Aug. 27, 2022, when LSU Law students contributed approximately 300 hours of volunteer work at sites including the USS KIDD Veterans Museum, Cat Haven, Keep Tiger Town Beautiful, Friends of the Animals, Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank, and OLOL Children’s Health Children’s Developmental Center at McMains.

Volunteer sites for the Spring Day of Service are still being finalized, but PILS Community Service Chair Blaike Lee Ordes said they will be similar to those where LSU Law students volunteered last semester.

Students interested in volunteering during the Spring Day of Service can get more details here and register to participate here. Registration closes on Wednesday, Feb. 1.

When Adriana Deras graduated from LSU with a bachelor’s degree in biological engineering in 2020, she planned to attend medical school. But as she prepared to take the MCAT, her desire to become a doctor was quickly overshadowed by her passion for rhetoric and she opted to apply to law school instead.

“I chose LSU Law because I wanted the sense of camaraderie that I had in engineering, and I knew I could have that here,” she said. “After speaking with LSU Law alumni and hearing how highly they spoke of it, I was sold. I wanted to stay close to home, receive a great legal education and build friendships and connections, and LSU Law checked all those boxes.”

As soon as she began taking classes at LSU Law, Deras knew she had made the right choice. While she initially planned to pursue a career in patent law, the Baton Rouge native said Professor Joseph Bockrath’s contracts class led her to pursue corporate law instead.

“Life has a funny way of giving you what you need,” Deras said. “I came to LSU Law hoping to use my technical undergraduate degree in engineering in a very nonconventional way, and I initially thought I would pursue patent law. During my first semester of my first year, I realized how much I enjoyed contracts and commercial transactions, and I now hope to use my legal degree to work in contracts for a company.”

Learn more about Deras in the full profile and find out how you can support outstanding students like her through LSU Law scholarships »

LSU Law alumnae Judge Frances Jones Pitman (’91) became chief judge of the Louisiana Second Circuit Court of Appeal on Jan. 1. A formal induction ceremony took place on Jan. 17 at the First Judicial District Court.

“I am honored to serve the people of north Louisiana in this important office,” said Judge Pitman, who was first elected to the Second Circuit in 2012 and was reelected without opposition in 2022. “I am looking forward to serving the people as their new chief judge. I pledge my best work to their service.”

Judge Pitman was promoted to chief by virtue of seniority after Judge D. Milton Moore III (’76) of Monroe completed his term at the end of 2022.

Louisiana Law Review will present its annual symposium on Friday, Feb. 10, with legal scholars from across the country converging at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center for a day of compelling discussions about tax law and policy issues.

“Let’s Get Fiscal: Contemporary Considerations in Taxation and the Law” will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the McKernan Auditorium. The distinguished lineup of symposium speakers includes:

Each of the speakers will present on tax topics within their area of specialty, and the symposium will conclude with a Q&A panel. Attendees can earn up to 4 hours of CLE credit.

Get complete details and register to attend.

The LSU Law Federalist Society will welcome Chad Squitieri, assistant professor of law at the Catholic School of America's Columbus School of Law, to the Paul M. Hebert Law Center on Thursday, Feb. 2, for a presentation on "A Textual Critique of the Major Questions Doctrine.” The event, which is free and open to the LSU Law community, will take place in Room 106 from 5 to 7 p.m. 

Squitieri’s scholarship addresses administrative law and constitutional law topics. His scholarship has appeared in the Missouri Law Review, the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy, and the Virginia Law Review, among others. He also serves as a Fellow within the Project for Constitutional Originalism and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition. 

Prior to joining the Catholic Law faculty in 2022, Squitieri practiced law at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP as a member of the Appellate and Constitutional Law and Administrative Law and Regulatory practice groups. He previously served as a Special Assistant to former United States Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia, and as a law clerk to then-Chief Judge D. Brooks Smith of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law in 2016, and Florida State University in 2013.

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