Sam Johnson, guest blogger
Over the weekend of November 10th and 11th, St. Thomas hosted the ABA Regional Negotiations Competition. Twenty teams, from as far away as Winnipeg and Alabama, competed for the opportunity to advance to the ABA’s National Negotiations Competition. The Minnesota law schools were well represented, with all four putting forth at least one team. The competitors negotiated for over ten hours on Saturday. Those preliminary rounds were followed by a reception in the atrium where the four finalists were announced. The judges were incredibly impressed by the talent of the competitors, but ultimately only four teams could advance.
The four finalists went head-to-head on Sunday, in the Frey Moot Courtroom. The teams were likely competing on little sleep as they had only received the problem the night before. Again, the judges commented that all teams did a fantastic job. The winning team will compete in the Finals in Dallas in February.
All of the teams and their coaches commented on what a great school St. Thomas is. Specifically, they commented that this year’s competition was one of the best organized they had ever been to. They loved the architecture of the building, and they even loved the Food for Thought catering.
The Board of Advocates would like to personally thank all of the judges who volunteered their free time to judge over the weekend. Additionally, special thanks to Dean Vischer who gave up his weekend to host the competition. We couldn’t have put on this competition without your help!
