Southwestern Law School’s Trial Advocacy Honors Program earned its second consecutive victory at the San Diego Defense Lawyers National Mock Trial Competition, held November 7-9, 2024, in San Diego. Southwestern’s Team 1, consisting of Chinonso Anokwute, Julianna Montano, David Olmedo-Barrera, and Natalie Parsi, secured a unanimous decision in the final round against Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law’s second team, competing among 24 law school teams from across the country. 

This year’s case challenged participants with a personal injury lawsuit against a self-driving car manufacturer. The plaintiff argued that defective sensors caused a collision during heavy rain, resulting in catastrophic injuries, while the defense maintained that driver negligence was the primary cause. Teams had to argue both sides of the case, testing their courtroom advocacy and legal strategy under high-pressure conditions. 

Southwestern was the only law school to advance two teams to the semi-finals. Team 1 defeated the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, to move on to the final round, where their defense prevailed. Team 2 comprising of Vanessa Lopez, Karin Moskalensky, Hayden Rexroad, and Setareh Soroush, also performed strongly but was narrowly defeated by Arizona State University’s second team in the semi-finals. 

Reflecting on the competition, Chinonso Anokwute, a member of Team 1, noted the dedication and resilience required to achieve the win. “Our advocates overcame numerous obstacles and setbacks on the road to San Diego,” Anokwute said. “From balancing demanding academic and work schedules to pushing through illness to even make it to the competition—our teams emerged stronger and more resilient. We are deeply grateful to our coaches, program directors, and the friends and family members who served as an invaluable support system, empowering us to keep moving forward.”