STAC: It Means More than You Know
By: Jacob Morse
What is it?
STAC—one of AAJ’s most successful and meaningful educational programming events—is an opportunity for law students to get a taste of what it means to become a trial lawyer. The tournament, held annually each spring, begins on March 2, 2023 with hundreds of law student teams competing in 10 geographic regions across the United States. After the regional weekend, the tournament culminates in a national finals weekend among the 10 regional winners, this year held in conjunction with AAJ’s PAC drive in New Orleans beginning on March 29, 2023. The fictional case involves a civil fact pattern, allowing law student advocates to try both sides of the case throughout the tournament rounds.
What does STAC do for AAJ?
For most student competitors, STAC is the first time they will encounter one of the many great aspects of participation in AAJ’s educational and membership programming. From the moment students begin practices working on their case, they are working on a case file written by AAJ volunteers, in a tournament run by AAJ members and staff, judged and scored by AAJ members and volunteers. The national champions are invited to AAJ’s annual convention, fully covered by AAJ scholarship funds. Because students must join AAJ as student members to compete, the tournament is an opportunity for our organization to showcase the benefits of our collective membership and to begin our member recruitment efforts early.
Why should you help?
In each round, one presiding judge calls balls and strikes on evidence and procedure while at least two volunteers score the teams on their advocacy skills. Volunteer judges must simply have a J.D., and come from all practices and experience levels (AAJ membership not required) who give approximately 3 hours of time to judge a round. The tournament’s success depends on a sufficient number of judges to give the student competitors a meaningful review of their preparation and trial skills. Having judged dozens of rounds in the past, I can attest that I always walk away grateful for the chance to assist, if for no other reason than to have refreshed my recollection on the rules of evidence and to have heard young advocates crafting compelling stories and jury arguments.
But STAC does more than that: it brings together judges and attorneys from across the nation to work in an AAJ-hosted environment for the benefit of students who are exploring the practice of trial work. We get to show off our best and brightest to members and non-members alike.
My STAC Experience
In 2019, I had the privilege of coaching a team of student advocates that ultimately won the national tournament finals in Philadelphia. I will admit: I was a defense attorney at the time, unfamiliar with AAJ as anything other than a group of plaintiff’s lawyers (I was aware secondhand that they knew how to have a good time). The AAJ hosts put on a fantastic experience for teams traveling in from far-and-wide, including recruiting prestigious volunteer jurors, hosting great events, and ensuring that the rounds proceeded as a well-oiled machine. For the championship tournament rounds, students were able to try their cases in the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit’s James A. Byrne United States Courthouse. It was an experience I’ll never forget, and one that helped to show me a small but great part of what AAJ had to offer. I encourage you to volunteer and experience what STAC has to offer for yourself.
Jacob Morse
Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC
Raleigh, NC
jmorse@milberg.com
(Pictured, Campbell University’s Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law AAJ National Championship Team in the James A. Byrne Courthouse. Left – Jacob Morse, AAJ member and STAC volunteer).