Georgia Tech Team Places Fourth at 2017 American Mock Trial Association National Championship

Posted May 8, 2017

The Georgia Tech Mock Trial (GTMT) team competed in the 33rd American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) National Championship Tournament in the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in Los Angeles over the weekend of April 21 - 23, 2017. Having successfully competed in the 16 Regional tournaments in February and in the Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) tournaments in March, Georgia Tech’s team was one of the top-ranked teams in the competition and the only undefeated team in the entire country. 

The multidisciplinary GTMT team comprised graduating seniors Ali Foreman (Public Policy), Chandler Matz (Computer Engineering), Sutton Birch (Business), and Troy Kleber (Biomedical Engineering), as well as third-year students Emma Smith (International Affairs), Sarah Stebbins (Business), and Megan Miller (Environmental Engineering).

During the first three rounds of the competition, the GTMT team defeated teams from Pennsylvania State University, the University of Richmond, and the University of Virginia. In the semifinal round, GTMT narrowly lost to Yale University’s team, the defending champions of the tournament.

The GTMT team finished the National Championship Tournament in 2nd place in their division and 4th place overall. 

The GTMT team was recently ranked fourth by the AMTA out of nearly 700 teams. The team has ascended in the rankings rapidly, going from being unranked in 2014 to becoming one of the best collegiate mock trial teams in the United States.

Mock Trial activities are situated within the Pre-Law Program in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy and overseen by program director Robert Pikowsky. The team is coached by attorneys Andy McNeil (Public Policy 2001) and Will Warihay.

“On behalf of Andy, myself, and the whole GTMT team, I want to profusely and profoundly thank Professor Kaye Husbands Fealing and the School of Public Policy for their support of our team this year. We also must thank the Ivan Allen College and all of Georgia Tech for their words of encouragement and support,” Warihay said.

He continued, “The success of the team this year is the culmination of their work for the entire academic year, and for some, the result of three or four years of growth and learning on the mock trial team throughout their time at Georgia Tech. Andy and I are excited to continue to build the Georgia Tech team for years to come!”