Boyd students top U.S. team at national ABA Client Counseling Competition

Students from the Boyd School of Law make the top U.S. team at the American Bar Association (ABA) Law Student Division National Client Counseling Competition. Law students Elizabeth Naccarato and Jenny Routheaux placed second in the competition held on March 17 in Dallas, Texas. Though a Canadian team took first, they were the best in the nation. The regional competition began with 141 teams from 12 different regions, and a final 15 teams, the regional winners, competed in Dallas for the nationals. The topic of this year’s competition was Family Law. The law students were placed in a simulated situation where they had to act as attorneys and conduct an interview with an actor playing the role of the client. In a set amount of time, they had to demonstrate competence of counseling skills in dealing with the client’s legal problem. By practicing preventive law techniques, attorneys can help the client avoid spending time in a courtroom and allow more time to resolve disputes creatively. The students will now represent the United States at the International Client Counseling Competition at the University of Sydney in Australia April 10-13. The winning team was coached by Boyd School of Law professors Jean Sternlight and Rebecca Scharf with support from law students John Courtney and Paula Gregory who placed third in the regional competition. UNLV’s William S. Boyd School of Law team contributors in the National Client Counseling Competition (from left) are Jenny Routheaux, coach Rebecca Scharf, coach Jean Sternlight, Paula Gregory, Elizabeth Naccarato, and John Courtney.