2022 Student Trial Advocacy Competition
The Regional Tournaments will be March 10-13, 2022 and the National Final will be held April 8-10, 2022.
Welcome to STAC 2022
Each year, AAJ hosts the Student Trial Advocacy Competition (STAC), showcasing top future trial lawyers. This tournament is one of the premier trial advocacy competitions in the country. Regional tournaments are held across the country, and the winner of each region then compete in the National Finals. The winning team members are awarded a scholarship and invited to join AAJ at its annual convention in July.
For the health and safety of all participants, judges, and court personnel, the 2022 competition will be held virtually. The regional tournaments will take place March 10-13, and the National Finals will take place April 8-10.
2022 National Champions: University of California, Los Angeles
Congratulations to team members Sarah Stebbins, Seth Wacks, Nicole Powell, and Eric “Rocky” Maas on their exception trial advocacy skills.
2022 Runner-up: Temple University
2022 STAC Regional Winners
Mid-Atlantic Region: American University Team 1 (#134) & Georgetown University (#108)
Midwest 1 Region: Duquesne University (#243) & Pennsylvania State University (#226)
Midwest 2 Region: DePaul University (#217) & University of Illinois-Chicago (#230)
Midwest 3 Region: St. Mary’s University Team 1 (#222) & Washington University Team 1 (#232)
Northeast 1 Region: New York University (#139) & Pace University (#121)
Northeast 2 Region: Temple University (#150) & University of Maryland (#113)
Northwest Region: UC-Berkeley Team 2 (#310) & UC-Davis (#311)
Southeast 1 Region: Florida International University (#119) & Stetson University (#126)
Southeast 2 Region: Cumberland School of Law Team 1 (#252) & University of Alabama (#204)
Southwest Region: UCLA Team 1 (#301) & UCLA Team 2 (#302)
STAC 2022 Timeline
- School registration opens: October 29, 2021
- School registration closes: November 30, 2021
- Fact pattern released: January 14, 2022 (Download PDF)
- Student registration opens: January 10, 2022
- Student registration closes: January 31, 2022
- Regional Tournaments: March 10-13, 2022
- National Finals: April 8-10, 2022
Participating in STAC was one of the greatest experiences I had in Law School. Our team had an amazing time traveling to the AAJ National Convention in San Diego and representing Campbell Law while networking with attorneys from across the country. We are proud to be National Champions.
Competition Rules and Procedures
Who can compete?
Each school may use its own method to select its trial team. However, for a student to be eligible, he or she must be enrolled for a J.D. degree and be a law student member of AAJ. Students can join AAJ here.
What is the format of the competition?
AAJ's mock trial cases are always civil cases and tend to deal with products liability, personal injury, or medical malpractice/negligence issues. Teams will be judged on their skills in case preparation, opening statements, use of facts, the examination of lay and expert witnesses, and closing arguments. There will be no written exercise.
How are law schools selected to participate in STAC?
STAC is open to law schools nationwide. Each school may enter up to two teams, with each team consisting of four law students. Each law school that registers for the competition is guaranteed one team.
Requested second teams will be registered on a first-come, first-served basis until all the team spots are filled. Remaining teams will be placed on a waiting list. If spots open due to teams dropping out of the competition, those spots will be offered to the waitlisted teams on a first-come, first-served basis.
Each school registration receives a timestamp which will be used to determine the schools that will be awarded a second team. If a school registers two teams and only one team is offered a place in the competition, the school will receive a refund for the second team after the completion of the competition.
How are regions assigned?
Teams are assigned to regionals by AAJ, no placement requests are accepted. Only the top team from each region will advance to the National Finals.
Law student are invited to join AAJ. In addition to being eligible to compete in STAC, law students receive online access to Trial Magazine and AAJ News Brief, are listed in AAJ member directory, and can apply for writing, speaking, and leadership opportunities.
Join TodaySupport the Student Trial Advocacy Competition and volunteer to serve as a judge or juror. More than a thousand AAJ members and other lawyers volunteer each year. It is a fun and easy way to support future trial lawyers. Sign-up and be alerted with judge recruitment begins.
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