Competition: Virtual format
REGISTRATION FOR THE COMPETITION IS NOW OPEN!: If you are a team wishing to participate in the 42nd annual McGee Civil Rights Moot Court in March 2027, please complete the form below.
Registration for the 2027 McGee National Civil Rights Moot Court lottery is now open and will remain open until October 14, 2026, at 5 pm.
All applications received before October 14, 2026, at 5 pm will be eligible for the lottery.
There will be 16 teams in the 2027 competition. School names will be randomly drawn after the lottery registration has closed, and teams randomly chosen will be notified on October 16. If there are fewer applicants for the lottery than team spots available, team names will be randomly drawn for second teams.
Steps to register for the lottery:
- Complete this form: McGee_Moot_Court_Lottery Registration_Fillable_2027.docx
- Email it to [email protected] (by October 14, 2026, at 5 pm CT)
- If chosen, be prepared to send a check only to MHSL within 14 days. Fee is $400 per team and $300 for a second team.
- Questions to “CompetitionsCmte” [email protected]
Mitchell Hamline School of Law will host the William E. McGee National Civil Rights Moot Court Competition.
We are committed to providing an outstanding experience for our student competitors. Student competitors and volunteer judges will meet in a Zoom courtroom for the arguments. A volunteer “bailiff” will be in the Zoom room ready to help with any tech-related questions. Each student team will participate in two preliminary rounds of oral argument. In each round, students will argue for approximately an hour, and will then be invited to break-out rooms while judges deliberate. Following the deliberations, judges will offer constructive feedback on the students’ performance. The top four teams will advance to the semifinal rounds on Saturday, and the winning teams from the semifinal rounds will compete in the championship round Saturday afternoon.
Mitchell Hamline is excited to field a team(s) at the 42th Annual William McGee Moot Court Competition, organized by Mitchell Hamline School of Law. The competition will be virtual from March 2-5, 2027. Students who are chosen to participate receive 2 credits. Students will need to log 90 total hours in brief research and writing, oral argument practice, and the competition to earn two credits.
2026-2027 MHSL McGee Teams
- [Student Name/YL BAM/BLENDED]
- [Student Name/YL BAM/BLENDED]
- [Student Name/YL BAM/BLENDED]
- [Student Name/YL BAM/BLENDED]
The first task for the students chosen for the Mitchell Hamline McGee team(s) will be to write an appellate brief. The brief must be written by the student members of the team(s) without assistance from faculty or others. The moot court problem is scheduled to be released in late October 2026. The due date for filing and serving the brief in January 2027.
Once the brief is filed and served, students will then develop oral arguments with the assistance of faculty coaching ahead of the preliminary oral arguments in March 2027. Team members should plan to invest a significant amount of time each week working on the brief and preparing for oral arguments. Students must have completed their first year to be considered. Blended students are encouraged to participate.
Professor Vonda Brown will coach the MHSL McGee Team(s). Please submit the following application materials to her at [email protected].
- Submit a brief letter of interest (100-250 words)
- In the letter, identify any prior moot court, debate or law competitions experience (no previous experience is required; this info is for planning purposes)
- Submit a short legal writing sample no more than 7 pages in length (e.g., argument section of a brief or motion memorandum)
- A two to three-minute video of the student’s oral argument based on one or more of the issues in the writing sample submitted. A video recorded on your phone is acceptable.