Zhang, McCarter, Condon, and Peters

The IIT Chicago-Kent team of Molly Condon ’15, Lucas Peters ’15, Matthew McCarter ’15 and Michael Zhang ’15 has won the regional tournament of the American Association for Justice’s 2015 Student Trial Advocacy Competition held March 19-22 in Chicago. IIT Chicago-Kent will join the first-place teams from 13 other regions in the national finals Thursday, April 16, through Sunday, April 19, in Pittsburgh, Pa.

This is IIT Chicago-Kent’s second consecutive regional championship and the third time in four years a team from the law school has won the regional tournament and advanced to the national finals.

This year, the students argued Jamie Walker v. New Age Auto Company, a products liability case. IIT Chicago-Kent defeated law school teams from Northern Illinois University, the University of St. Thomas (in St. Paul, Minn.), and the University of Illinois. In the semi-final round, IIT Chicago-Kent beat a team from John Marshall, which set up the championship round with a second University of Illinois team.

Winning team member Condon completed her undergraduate education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in political science and a minor in philosophy. Peters received a degree in sociology from San Francisco State University. McCarter earned his undergraduate degree in history from the University of Iowa, and Zhang graduated from University of Calgary with a degree in political science. Peters was on the IIT Chicago-Kent team that won last year’s regional championship.

The team is coached by IIT Chicago-Kent alumni Joseph Carlasare ’12, Nicholas Economakos ’12, Jon Neuleib ’02, and Rachel Remke ’12.

The American Association for Justice (formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America) is a broad-based, international coalition of attorneys, law professors, paralegals, and law students.

IIT Chicago-Kent’s trial advocacy teams have won numerous individual student honors and regional and national competitions. In the most recent U.S. News & World Report graduate school rankings, IIT Chicago-Kent’s Trial Advocacy Program is ranked fourth in the country.