Student blogger:

Jaryn Saritzky (’14)

The way I remember it, the Appellate Court Room was entirely dark with the exception of two spotlights: one on me, and one on the judges. The judges’ bench? At least 10 feet tall. Maybe even 20. My words? Complete gibberish. This is how I remember first year Oral Arguments. To my surprise, I made it onto Moot Court–despite the fact that I cried during one round. Twice.



(From the left) Jaryn Saritzky and Katherine Currie-Diamond


(From the left) Jaryn Saritzky and Katherine Currie-Diamond



I competed for the first time in the fall. My team was great, and we made it to the quarterfinals. My feedback from the judges? “Relax. Loosen up.” It was the same feedback my coaches and fellow Moot Court members had given me. They all could see it in me: I was terrified.

When I decided to compete again in the spring, I was determined to make this competition different. A mentor suggested that I approach oral argument like I would a conversation with a stubborn family member at the dinner table. This was not as easy as it sounded. But after one of our last practices, one coach said something that stuck with me: “Try to remember that this is your moment up at the podium. Just enjoy yourself.”

I was incredibly anxious going into the competition. But my partner and I reminded one another of our goal before each round: just have fun. Our first two rounds could not have gone better. All of the teams performed well, and the judges were fantastic. They asked challenging and thought-provoking questions, and this resulted in better performances from us. After the preliminary rounds, my partner and I received an award for the third place brief, and we both received awards for our oral advocacy in the preliminary rounds. We advanced to the quarterfinals the following day.

competition2


(From the left) Minhquan Nguyen, Andrew Mase, Katherine Currie-Diamond and Jaryn Saritzky]



The quarterfinals did not go as well. To our surprise, we ended up advancing, but we were disappointed with our performances. In the semifinals, we tried to focus on having fun again. We ended up losing to a great team, but were happy with our performances. I received third place oral advocate, and my partner received second place oral advocate.

I always knew that Moot Court would be a valuable experience, offering me the opportunity to hone both my written and oral advocacy skills. But I was so overcome by fear in my first competition that I did not enjoy myself. It was not until my second competition that I realized how much fun Moot Court can actually be.

Something that I have realized during my time at Chapman is that while building a resume is certainly an important part of law school, the process should also be enjoyable. Moot Court is a great way to hone advocacy skills and build a resume. The fun is just icing on the cake.

About the Author:

Jaryn Saritzky (2L) is originally from Los Angeles, and graduated from UC San Diego in 2010 with a degree in Political Science and Critical Gender Studies. Since starting Chapman, she has been involved in Moot Court, Nexus Journal of Law & Policy and the Public Interest Law Foundation. She has especially enjoyed getting to know the professors, and working with first year students as an Academic Fellow. Jaryn plans to pursue a career in dependency law and children’s rights.

The views expressed in the student blogs are those of the author and not the law school.