Boyd Law Hosts Largest National Native American Law Student Association Moot Court Competition in History
Written By Pat McDonnell
More than 300 people attended the 33rd National Native American Law Student Association (NNALSA) Moot Court Competition at the William S. Boyd School of Law in February.
Held February 14–15, 2025, the event is the only national law school competition focusing on issues affecting tribal nations and Indian law. Professor Danielle Finn, director of Boyd Law’s Indian Nations Gaming and Governance Program, Assistant Professor-in-Residence and faculty advisor for Boyd Law’s Native American Law Student Association (NALSA) chapter, said it was both the first time the competition had been held in Nevada and the largest in its history.
“It showcased that we are at the forefront of tribal gaming,” Finn said. “It gives students — Native and non-Native — experience applying federal Indian gaming law to a hypothetical issue. They become better advocates for Indigenous people.”
As the host, Boyd Law did not compete. The University of Kansas School of Law took home the championship for the fifth consecutive year. The event was generously sponsored by the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation.
This year’s problem asked participants to argue the legal merits of a hypothetical tribe’s ability to offer statewide mobile sports betting with only a limited gaming license. The central legal question involved a “compacting issue” — whether licensees must enter into a tribal-state compact to offer sports betting. The second issue was civil jurisdiction: Could the tribe assert jurisdiction over non-Native parties?
The event’s success played a key role in Boyd’s NALSA being named 2025 “Outstanding Student Organization” at the annual UNLV Rebel Awards. Finn worked closely with Makai Zuniga, Boyd ’25 and outgoing NALSA president, to plan both the competition and accompanying activities.
“Indigenous people from this area — the Southern Paiutes and Northern Paiutes—were able to exhibit their culture for those that traveled near and far; offering prayers and sharing their oral traditions,” Finn said. “It was a huge success.”
Boyd Law teams are set to compete in the 2026 NNALSA competition at Northwestern University.