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March 31, 2017

The University of Kentucky College of Law’s National Trial team of Seth Fortenbery and Nealy Williams made it to the final round of the 2017 National Trial Competition Regional Tournament, held February 18-19 at the Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.

The tournament, hosted by the American Mock Trial Association, featured 22 prominent teams from Arkansas, Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee. Fortenbery and Williams tackled both sides of a criminal case and won four straight trials to qualify for the final round. The team then lost to the University of Missouri – Kansas City by one ballot.

“This is the most prestigious trial competition in the nation and these students put in a lot of evenings and weekends preparing for this competition,” said Allison Connelly, Director of the Legal Clinic and James and Mary Lassiter Professor of Law. Prof. Connelly serves as the faculty advisor for TAB (Trial Advocacy Board) at UK Law and coach of the college’s trial teams.

Additionally, UK Law’s team of Caleb Taylor and Austin Flaugh competed. The competition was the perfect opportunity for the students to put into practice the written and oral advocacy skills they’ve learned in the classroom.

“The students were incredible,” said Connelly. “They won with honor and lost with grace; they represented our law school with great integrity.”