The Moot Court final was conducted by three distinguished jurists: Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw, Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals; Justice Carla Wong McMillian, Georgia Supreme Court; and Judge L. Felipe Restrepo, Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.
Amanda N. Marino is a 3L at Indiana University Maurer School of Law. She is part of the Indiana Journal of Global and Legal Studies, the Protective Order Project, and the Incarcerated Individuals Legal Assistance Project. She has also been recognized in multiple trial competitions at her school. Amanda founded the Federal Death Row Inmates Project (currently undergoing a name change) in 2020 and has always had a passion for storytelling and the journalists who do it. Amanda was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in October 2015 and has managed to get what she wants out of law school despite having to freelance as her own pancreas and manage a disability daily. As a former news producer and reporter, she is looking forward to securing employment that will allow her to project journalists’ rights.
Being invited to participate in the 14th Annual First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court Competition as a law student with a disability was an honor. Being recognized as the Best Oralist among dozens of amazing competitors – including my own writing partner Brillian Bao – was a blessing.
Amanda Marino, Indiana University Maurer School of Law
Alexandria is a 3L at LMU Loyola Law School, where she is Chief Note and Comment Editor of the Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review. She worked as a summer intern with the Office of the California Attorney General during her 2L summer and has externed for the Honorable Dolly M. Gee of the United States District Court, Central District of California, and at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Prior to law school, Alexandria played Division III softball at Wellesley College.
I really enjoyed my time participating in the ABA’s First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court Competition! It was a great learning experience to research and brief a complex First Amendment issue and very rewarding to have argued in front of an incredible panel of appellate judges and hear their feedback. I am so grateful to have met the other competitors, my mentors, and the volunteer judges!
Alexandria Faura, Loyola Law School, Los Angeles
Charles Lam is a 3L at LMU Loyola Law School, where he is an Entertainment Law Fellow and executive editor of the Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review. He worked as a summer associate at Sidley Austin’s Greater Los Angeles offices during his 2L summer and has externed for the Honorable Philip S. Gutierrez of the United States District Court, Central District of California, and at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Prior to law school, Charles worked as a journalist for NBC News.
Competing in the ABA's First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court Competition has been one of my most fulfilling law school experiences. My 1L oral argument was cancelled due to the pandemic, so getting advocacy experience through the competition scratched an itch I've had for a long time. And I am so grateful to have met the other competitors and volunteer mentors and judges.
Charles Law, Loyola Law School, Los Angeles
Michael M. Choi is a second year JD-MBA student at Northwestern University. He is also a graduate of Columbia University (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) and Sciences Po. Prior to law school, Michael worked as a project manager for Takashi Murakami, a Japanese contemporary artist, and then transitioned to a career in law when he began working as a corporate paralegal in the New York office of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP. During his 1L summer, Michael was a summer associate in the Chicago office of King & Spalding LLP where he split his time doing transactional and litigation work. He looks forward to returning to New York his 2L summer where he will be a summer associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP. Michael is passionate about multimedia storytelling (creative writing, documentaries, and plastic arts) and his hobbies include watching film/TV and practicing judo.
Participating in the First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court was extremely challenging but immensely rewarding at the same time. The facts presented were very topical and I learned a great deal about the constantly shifting landscape of First Amendment jurisprudence. While I learned a lot from doing individual case law research for the brief, the best value-added of the moot court experience was the invaluable mentorship from the designated media attorney-mentor as well as the practical guidance from the panel of judges during oral arguments.
Michael Choi, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Rohun Reddy is a 2L JD-MBA student at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law / Kellogg School of Management and is interested in the intersection of technology, media, and law. At law school, Rohun serves as Co-President of the Arts and Entertainment Law Society and is an editor on the Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property. Rohun spent his 1L summer externing for the Honorable David O. Carter of the Central District of California and will be spending his 2L summer at Paul, Weiss in New York. Before law school, Rohun interned at several entertainment companies, such as Viacom and FilmNation Entertainment, and spent several years as a technology and media consultant at Activate Consulting in New York. Rohun holds a B.F.A. in Film/Television from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
The First Amendment and media law moot court provided me an opportunity to hone my advocacy skills in an area of law that I am deeply passionate about. I learned so much from my mentor-coach, the other competitors, and our highly accomplished judges, and I am so grateful for the connections I made throughout the process. The moot court has definitely been one of my favorite law school experiences!
Rohun Reddy, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
The Forum would like to thank the following sponsors for their generous support of the Competition:
The Forum is thankful for all of our volunteers who help us each year.
The Committee would like to thank the distinguished jurists who judged the final found of oral arguments:
The Committee would also like to thank:
Frank LoMonte with the University of Florida’s Brechner Center for Freedom of Information for drafting the hypothetical for the 2021-22 competition.
The Committee would also like to thank the following attorneys for serving as judges during the semi-final round of oral arguments:
Kathy Kirby
Laura Prather
Jorge Colon
Jameel Jaffer
David McCraw
Matt Topic
The Committee would also like to thank the following attorneys for serving as judges during the preliminary rounds:
Amanda Martin
Arron Pak
Brant Biddle
Brendan Healey
Brian Barrett
Carrie Casselman
Chelsea Kelly
Christa Westerberg
Dan Novack
David Greene
David Karp
Emmy Parsons
Eric Stahl
Eric Wong
George Freeman
Hadar Harris
Jack Greiner
Jeff Smith
Jen McArdle
Jesse Feitel
Joe Slaughter
Joshua Wueller
JT Morris
Kaitlin Gurney
Katherine Larsen
Kay Murray
Lesli Gaither
Leslie Pedernales
Lisa Rafferty
Lynn Carrillo
Max Mishkin
Michael Berry
Nathan Siegel
Paul Safier
Peter Canfield
Rajesh Srinivasan
Robert Bertsche
Robert Gutierrez
Rory Eastburg
Sarah Brewerton-Palmer
Terence Keegan
Thomas Leatherbury
The following people for serving as the 2021-2022 Competition Courtroom Deputies:
Anne Marie Tamburro
Gunita Singh
Josh Moore
Kate Brittingham
Kayla Sewell
Lindsie Rank
Maggie Burreson
Natalie Seales
Regan Sherrell
Shawn Musgrave
The Committee would also like to thank the following attorneys for serving as mentors to moot court participants.:
Adrianna Rodriguez
Alia Smith
Alonzo Wickers
Ana-Klara Anderson
Dan Laidman
Dana Green
Giselle Girones
James McFall
Jennifer Mansfield
Jeremy Kutner
Kimberly Chow Sullivan
Leita Walker
Matthew Schafer
Natalie Harris
Quynh-Anh Kibler
Robb Harvey
Robin Luce-Hermann
Steve Zansberg
