Campbell Law advances to quarter finals, earns outstanding advocate at South Texas Mock Trial Challenge

RALEIGH - Campbell Law School advocates advanced to the quarter finals at the 15th Annual South Texas Mock Trial Challenge, which was held April 9-12 at the Harris County Courthouse in Houston, Texas.

The team of Paige Klink '26, Hailey LaRock '26, Thomas Lotito '26 and Keriann Rodriguez '27 were proudly coached by alumna Sydney Kraft '24.

Rodriguez also earned an Outstanding Advocate Award, said Director of Competitive Advocacy Rene Shekmer.

"We ended our competition season with great results from excellent teams and excellent coaches this weekend," Shekmer wrote in an email following the competition.

This year's competition problem involved a trial centered around the theft of a trade secret, according to competition organizers.

Campbell Law is a perennial powerhouse in the South Texas Mock Trial Challenge. Campbell Law advocates have won the competition four times, most recently in 2022 and 2016, and between 2013 and 2018, the school reached the Final Four for five consecutive years. In 2025, Campbell Law also advanced to the quarter finals. Campbell Law advocates frequently earn individual honors at this event, including Michaela Weber '19, who won Outstanding Advocate in 2019, Jacob Morse '16, who won Best Advocate in 2016, and Grant Draughn '25, who won Outstanding Advocate in 2025.

ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW SCHOOL

Since its founding in 1986, Campbell Law has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion, and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. Among its accolades, the school has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation's top Professionalism Program and by the American Academy of Trial Lawyers for having the nation's best Trial Advocacy Program. Campbell Law boasts more than 5,000 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2026, Campbell Law is celebrating 50 years of graduating legal leaders and 17 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina's Capital City.

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