Howard Payne University junior Chandler Raine was the recipient of the Top Individual Oralist for the second consecutive year and the team of Jake Aschmutat and Adam Hardy was named the Top Team by the Texas Undergraduate Moot Court Association in March.
Raine is an Academy and political science major from Mesquite, Texas. Aschmutat is a junior Academy and political science and psychology major from Corpus Christi, Texas and his teammate Hardy is a junior Academy, political science and Biblical languages major from Corpus Christi.
In the top team category, HPU had two out of the top five teams. In addition to HPU taking first place, Raine and his partner, Angela Haney, also took fifth place in this category. Haney is a senior Academy and political science major from Denison, Texas.
HPU students were also ranked four of the top five individual speakers with Raine taking first place, senior Robert Davis winning second, Hardy taking third and Aschmutat in fifth place.
Davis is a political science major from Universal City, Texas. His partner for competitions was Kelly Miller, a sophomore Academy and political science major from Boyd, Texas.
The HPU Moot Court is under the direction of Mandy Locker, J.D., assistant professor of criminal justice. Additional HPU teams competing this year were the team of senior Bethany Peterson, from Lake Jackson, Texas, and freshman Bethany Berry, from Post, Texas; and the team of sophomore Elizabeth Davidson, from Georgetown, Texas, and freshman Elizabeth Rogers from Grand Junction, Colorado.
Moot Court is simulation of the appeals court process before the U.S. Supreme Court. The Gary D. Elliston Moot Court Endowment Fund was established in 2006 to provide funding for the HPU Moot Court program. The endowment covers costs incurred by the organization such as travel, lodging, entry fees, organizational dues to the TUMCA, and other costs related to participating in regional and national competitions.
