IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law will compete in the 2014 National Institute for Trial Advocacy’s Tournament of Champions October 14-20, 2014 at Baylor Law School in Waco, Texas.

The Tournament of Champions is one of the most prestigious law school trial competitions in the country. Each year, 16 schools from the nation’s nearly 200 law schools are invited to participate. Invitations are based on the schools’ three-year performance record at the National Trial Competition and the National Student Trial Advocacy Competition and in prior Tournament of Champions competitions.

This is the eighth consecutive year and the 13th time overall that IIT Chicago-Kent has participated in the competition. In 2010, IIT Chicago-Kent won the overall Tournament of Champions and its best advocate award.

Third-year students Matthew McCarter, Lucas Peters, Emily Schroeder and Judy Shammo will represent IIT Chicago-Kent. The team is coached by Judge David A. Erickson, retired Illinois Appellate Court justice and director of IIT Chicago-Kent’s Trial Advocacy Program, and IIT Chicago-Kent alumni Joshua Jones ’08, Lindsay Gephardt ’12, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Demetrios G. Kottaras ’84, Rachel Remke ’12, and Erik Wilson ’12. Remke was a member of the IIT Chicago-Kent team that won the 2010 tournament.

McCarter earned an undergraduate degree in history from the University of Iowa. Peters received a degree in sociology from San Francisco State University. Shammo earned an undergraduate degree in political science with minors in Spanish and sociology from DePaul University. Schroeder graduated from Purdue University with an honors degree in political science with minors in history and Italian.