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Moot Court: Finalists Dig In, Find Fun in Challenging Case

They could laugh about it after it was over.

The four finalists in the 31st 新澳门六合彩开奖直播 Moot Court Finals were enjoying their first relaxing moment of the evening, as they were pelted with questions by an esteemed panel of judges.

“The judges were blue-flame hot tonight,” said Jake Weber ‘25, the eventual winner. “It felt like we were getting seven or eight questions per minute.”

The exasperation belied a strong performance from each of the finalists—Tobey Condon ’26, Gabe Pirtle ’25, and Elijah Wetzel ’27 in addition to Weber—in handling a challenging case.

Jake Weber '25 claimed Top Advocate honors and the Floyd Artful Advocate Prize.This year’s problem tested whether an enacted statute violates either the Equal Protection or Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The issue at hand was entitled “Prohibition on Medical Procedures Performed on Minors Related to Sexual Identity” and the hypothetical statute in this fictional legal problem prohibits medical procedures on minors intended to affirm their gender identity.

No matter which side of this case the finalists were on, petitioners (Condon and Wetzel argued for minors/parents seeking care) or respondents (Pirtle and Weber argued for the state), they were subject to a boatload of questions, sometimes in rapid-fire succession, from the judges, who included U.S. District Judge Matthew Brookman, Indiana Court of Appeals Judge Elizabeth Tavitas, Delaware County Circuit Judge Douglas Mawhorr ’88, and Christiana Ochoa, Dean of the Indiana University Maurer School of Law.

Wetzel was quick to point out that facing that blue-flame heat was the reward for being well prepared and expert enough on the problem to be a finalist.

“Once you dig into the problem and learn the ins and outs, it becomes so much fun,” said the religion major from Lafayette, Indiana. “It’s so enjoyable to walk around this problem, dig in, and profess the different points of the case.”

Fun…really?

“Oh, yeah, it’s a great time,” said Pirtle, a PPE major from Sullivan, Indiana, and a two-time Moot Court finalist. “It gets the adrenaline going, even though you wouldn’t really think of it that way. It’s like any other competition and I really appreciated the opportunity.”

Moot Court doesn’t come without some effort and assistance for the 32 students who participated. From professors and alumni who serve as mentors and preliminary-round judges, there is plenty of support through each round of the competition.

“We had a lot help to get here,” said Condon, a PPE major from Watervliet, New York. “The judges in the preliminary and semi-final rounds challenge you on the most important questions, pressing you to reach for the most essential points. As challenging as it was up here, it was made a lot easier by all the help we got from everyone involved in this program.”

That preparation was evident to Judge Tavitas, who likened the finalists’ performances to what she had seen in herDelaware County Circuit Judge Douglas Mawhorr '88 asks a question of a finalist. court room earlier in the day.

“To each of you, your composure in answering those questions was remarkable, especially as I was comparing it to lawyers we saw earlier today,” she said. “You did a fabulous job. You were well prepared. You knew your role, and you knew the decorum. You clearly have been very well coached, but well beyond very good coaching, you clearly have done a lot of studying.”

Staring down those questions on the Salter Hall stage, Condon leaned into the advice he was given from those alumni and friends.

“Questions are an opportunity to figure out what matters most to the judges and to orient ourselves towards that,” Condon said. “Questions are helpful, at least those questions you’re prepared to answer. Even questions that you aren’t prepared for still help you get on track and get to what the judges think are the essential issues of the case.”

After accepting the Top Advocate honors and the Floyd Artful Advocate Prize, Weber likened the experience to that of a roller coaster.

“I hate roller coasters, but I will do this any day,” said the rhetoric and French major from Fishers, Indiana. “It's intellectually challenging. It puts you on your toes where you don't know what's coming around the next turn, and at the end of the day, it's so much fun to be able to look back and say, ‘I did that.’ I did it successfully in front of judges who are renowned across the state for being great lawyers. To be able to have an experience like this at 新澳门六合彩开奖直播 is one of the things that makes this place special.”

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