History
Origins of the Moot Court Team
The Moot Court Team has been a fixture at the College of Law since the school's founding in 1909. The Structure and functions of the team as we know it today were developed during the 1962-63 academic year, when team members, school administrators and Professor Fletcher Baldwin collaborated to establish a Constitution and basic guidelines for the newly-named Justice Campbell Thornal Moot Court Board. The following year, the team brought home the first of many national awards - the Harris Tweed Award for Best Brief at the American Bar Competition.
The team is named for the late Justice Campbell Thornal, a 1930 graduate of the College of Law who served on the Florida Supreme Court from 1955 to 1970. Justice Thornal was frequently compared to Abraham Lincoln because of his rugged honesty, tenacity of purpose, keen sense of humor, and tall lanky figure. Committing both time and resources to the team, Justice Thornal helped members achieve and maintain the standard of excellence in brief writing and oral advocacy for which the Moot Court Team is known today.
The Moot Court Final Four Competition
Spring Competition
Originally, the Spring Moot Court Final Four Competition at the College of Law was sponsored by the Orlando law firm of
Maguire, Voorhis & Wells, P.A. The competition is named after Raymer F. Maguire, Jr., son of the founder of Maguire, Voorhis
& Wells, P.A., managing partner of the firm, and alumnus of the University of Florida College of Law. As the oldest law firm in
Orlando, Maguire, Voorhis & Wells provided high quality legal services for 80 years.
In the summer of 1998, Maguire, Voorhis & Wells, P.A. merged with the law firm of Holland & Knight LLP. Accordingly, the spring competition was called the Raymer F. Maguire, Jr. Moot Court Competition, sponsored by Holland & Knight LLP. Holland & Knight LLP is one of the largest law firms in the world with more than 1,100 lawyers practicing in more than 150 areas of law. As the largest firm in Orlando, Holland & Knight LLP is dedicated to providing both superior legal services and substantive public services. For 24 years, Holland & Knight LLP and Maguire, Voorhis and Wells, P.A. were the proud sponsors of the Maguire Competition.
Fall Competition
The Fall Moot Court Final Four Competition at the College of Law was sponsored by the Orlando law firm of Zimmerman
Kiser & Sutcliffe, P.A. With a commitment to client focused service and professional excellence, the firm was established
in 1984, in Orlando, Florida, by Bernard J. Zimmerman, Wendell J. Kiser and Roland A. “Jerry” Sutcliffe. Zimmerman Kiser
& Sutcliffe, P.A. has earned a respected reputation within the business and legal community as a firm that provides the highest
caliber of legal counsel and delivers exceptional results with innovative, cost-effective and thorough representation. Zimmerman
Kiser & Sutcliffe, P.A. has been consistently recognized as one of the largest law firms in Central Florida since 1989, having
nearly 40 attorneys practicing in the areas of corporate, tax, real estate, litigation, bankruptcy & creditors’ rights, estate planning
& probate and workers’ compensation. For the 23rd consecutive year, Zimmerman Kiser & Sutcliffe, P.A. is the proud sponsor of
the Fall Moot Court Competition.
Annual Competition
The Justice Campbell Thornal Moot Court Board holds an annual intramural competition each summer. This change from
biannual competitions to a single annual competition was made to conform to the single fall entering class. The intramural competition
affords rising 2L law students the opportunity to compete for membership on the Moot Court Team. Competitors submit
an appellate brief and argue the case twice before a mock tribunal. Of those selected for the team, the top four competitors are
chosen to compete in the annual Moot Court Final Four Competition. Holland & Knight LLP and Zimmerman, Kiser & Sutcliffe,
P.A. are both proud sponsors of this year’s annual Moot Court Final Four Competition.