Associate Dean Sowle's Announcements, April 10 - April 14, 2023
Summer 2023 and Fall 2023 Terms. The schedule of classes for Summer 2023 will be issued late in the week of April 10 along with information about registration for Summer classes. The schedule of classes for Fall 2023 will be issued later in April. Information for first-year students on upper-level requirements and course planning is available below.
Information for 1L Students on Upper-Level Course Selection and Requirements. In preparation for Summer and Fall registration, we are providing a guide we publish annually that provides detailed information on graduation requirements, upper-level course selection, and related subjects. The guide, entitled "Where Do We Go From Here? Information for Students Entering Their Second Year," is available by clicking here.
Trial Team Tryouts. [Message from the Trial Team:] Are you interested in receiving individual instruction on trial skills, making invaluable career connections with practicing attorneys, and having tons of FUN? Join Chicago-Kent's nationally ranked Trial Team!
Who: Tryouts are open to any student not graduating this year.
When: Tryouts will be April 26th and April 27th from 4:00pm to 9:00pm. Callbacks will be held April 28th, starting at 4:00pm.
Where: Marovitz and Kohen Courtrooms.
How: Sign up for a time slot by clicking here. You must sign up by April 24th.
What: Just prepare (for either side of the case -- see below for detailed instructions): a 3-5 minute Opening Statement, a 10-15 question direct, a 10-15 question cross, and a 3-5 minute Closing Argument. If you would like to meet with a trial team member for some help before tryouts, please sign up here.
Informational packets with everything you need to know and the problem, Ricki Rhodes v. Los Diablos Correctional Center and Pat Mercer, are available by clicking here (information handout) and here (Los Diablos case). Contact cktrialtryouts@gmail.com with questions!
Moot Court Tryouts. [Message from the Moot Court Honor Society:] To all students who will be enrolled in 2023-2024: Please consider trying out for Chicago-Kent's Moot Court
MCHS Tryouts. First up to the plate, MCHS will hold tryouts from Saturday, April 22nd to Tuesday, April 25th, to select about 25-30 new J.D. members for 2023-24. We need a crew of engaging conversationalists, strong writers, and hard-working team players so that we can hold our place as one of the nation's most consistently successful appellate advocacy programs. You may submit your application, and then sign up for a 10-minute tryout spot, anytime through Friday, April 14th.
The tryout process:
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If you’re interested in--or just curious about--trying out, check out this document. It outlines the process and gives some background about who we are and what you'd do on MCHS. If you know you'd like to try out, check out this short and snappy version of how to try out!
- At some point between now and April 14th, submit a resume and writing sample via this Google form. For the writing sample, please submit an appellate brief if possible, since that's most relevant to the writing you'd do in MCHS.
- Right afterwards, ALSO sign up for a 10-minute oral argument slot via this Google calendar appointment page. (If you have any trouble accessing the calendar, make sure you're in your kentlaw account.)
- Present an oral argument during your chosen time slot during tryouts, which will all be held via Zoom between Saturday, April 22nd and Tuesday, April 25th.
If you have questions, please reach out to anyone in MCHS! We're all happy to answer questions.
--> Our MCHS President Suzanna Lewis, and the rest of our 2022-2023 executive board, Romteen Bahramirad, Jonah Brandhandler, Nicole Jansma, Renee Kumon, Kaitlyn Kloss, Afreen Mohiuddin, and Julia Veeser.
--> Our incoming MCHS President Kaitlyn Watkins, and the rest of our 2023-2024 executive board, Paul Ansani, Manuela Burek, Steven Criner, Erin Gallagher, Marisa Gelabert, Nell Riordan, and Elizabeth Weber.
--> Also check out our CKMoot Facebook page and our Instagram account!
Practices! MCHS members, joined by some of our fantastic student org moot court alumni, are holding practices for MCHS candidates and anyone preparing for their Hughes oral arguments. To sign up for practice sessions, check out this Google Sheet. Members are adding more practice times as time progresses, so if no practices match your schedule, please check again in the future, or reach out to any of the members who note on their tabs in the Sheet that they can schedule practices at other times too.
More Moot Court! In addition to MCHS, Chicago-Kent offers a wealth of other moot court opportunities. Many of our student organizations sponsor moot court teams. In the past, many student organizations--including ACLU, APALSA, BLSA, HLLSA, IMCHS/ILSA, ILS, Lambdas, and WIL, have sponsored moot court teams. Follow their links (same handy document!) to be on their radar when they start accepting applications! Several of our faculty also coordinate moot court teams, and I've included information about those as well: bankruptcy, IP, and environmental law.
And if you have any questions about MCHS tryouts or practices, or about any of the student org or program-specific moot court teams, you can always contact me at ckeller@kentlaw.iit.edu.
Lastly, if you'd like to see some excellent student advocacy in action, check out the oral argument recordings list, in one of the documents at the top of the Hughes practice sheets.
Classrooms for Remote Use. If you are taking an online class this semester, we have reserved rooms at the Law School for you to use if you won't have sufficient time to travel from home to school (or vice versa) in between your online class and an on-site class you have the same day. These rooms will remain the same throughout the semester. Click here for the list. Please note: You will each connect to class individually in Zoom and should have earphones or headphones with you.
Counseling Services. This is a reminder that the university provides counseling services free of charge for students. Click here for details on the available resources, including individual counseling through Skylight Counseling Services. In addition to resources available through the university, the Lawyers Assistance Program also provides assistance to law students. LAP provides free and confidential assistance to members of the Illinois legal community, and can help you with issues of addiction, stress, anxiety, depression, focusing, worries about the character and fitness process, and having a successful first-year transition. Click here for more information about LAP and the services it provides.
Joke of the Week. Why was 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 8 9.