ND Law students to compete in national finals of 2023 Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition

Notre Dame Law School’s Intellectual Property Moot Court team will advance to the national round of the Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition next month in Washington, D.C. This is the fifth time in six years that the team has advanced to the national finals of the competition.

The team placed second overall in the Chicago regional on February 4. They also won the award for Best Oralists.

The oralists for the team are third-year law students Shelby Dedo and Nicholas D’Andrea. The team’s brief writer is third-year law student Shannon Moore. The team was supported by second-year law students Olivia Alford, Jazmyn Ferguson, and Haley Palmer.

The competition focuses on current issues in trademark and unfair competition law. Approximately 80 teams participate across the country, with two teams advancing to the championship round from each region. This year’s problem involved an international boy band’s use of a slogan that is allegedly similar to a record store’s trademark, as well as the store’s alleged use of the band’s likeness to sell its products. The team argued three primary issues: a likelihood of confusion claim, a failure to function defense, and a false endorsement counterclaim.

The Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition, sponsored by the International Trademark Association, is an annual event that provides law students with an opportunity to develop their brief writing and oral advocacy skills in a mock courtroom experience.

Learn more about moot court opportunities at Notre Dame Law School at law.nd.edu/mootcourt.