The University of Mississippi School of Law Negotiation Board team of Merrit Baria and Mason Borneman were named co-champions and national finalists in the 2022 Regional American Bar Association Competition, held at the University of Colorado Law School in Boulder Oct. 21 – 23.
The team, coached by Professor Marie Cope, now advances to compete in the National ABA Negotiation Competition this February in Chicago. There were 28 teams in total that participated in the regional competition.
“Merritt and I are thrilled to have the opportunity to represent the University of Mississippi School of Law at the national level,” said Borneman. “We are grateful to Professor Marie Cope, Professor Molly Fergusson, Negotiation Board Chair Blaze Jeffery, External Vice-Chair Katie Lee Crockett, and all of the Negotiation Board members for helping us prepare for this moment. We certainly owe much of our success to the incredible support system we have behind us each step of the way.”
The negotiation simulation provides students with a topic where they act as lawyers on behalf of a client and negotiation with an opposing side. At regionals, teams compete in two preliminary rounds, and the top four teams advance to the final round.
The competition is part of the ABA Law Student Division and provides students a way to hone their skills in negotiation. Each year, several institutions host regional competitions. UM Law is a regional host for this year’s competition on Nov. 4-6.
To sign up as a judge for the competition, click here.