FEB. 13, 2006 - -To the surprise and delight of its staff and
students, the Charleston School of Law's first-ever national competition
netted the school's first grand prize.
Two teams of students from the unaccredited law school, which
opened in 2003, traveled to Virginia this weekend to argue both
sides of a hypothetical case in the fictional state of South Virginia.
Specifically, the students argued whether the state's intention
to extend a nasal-gastric tube into the stomach of a woman on
death row constituted an invasion of her privacy rights.
The scenario was concocted for the "moot court" competition,
sponsored by the American Center for Law and Justice and held
Friday and Saturday at Regent University.
Dabny Lynn, Harriett Matthews and Sara Ruff were the overall
champions, and Matthews also was named best oral advocate, said
Charleston School of Law professor Lorri Unumb. Robert Pickens
and John Robinson formed the other team.
"For an as yet unaccredited law school to go to a national
competition and get noticed is a huge thing, but to come away
with the championship is just unheard of," Unumb said.
The three-round competition was tough, said Miller Shealy, a
professor at the school of law who coached students and attended
the event.
"I've argued before the U.S. Supreme Court before,"
he said, "and that was a hell of a lot easier than this panel."
