Posted by Mary Wimberley on 2009-03-12

A mock trial team from Samford University's Cumberland School of Law bested 15 teams to win a recent regional championship in Decatur, Ga., and the right to advance to national competition.

Teammates Summer Davis of Birmingham, Tim Douthit of Huntsville, Shannon Elliot of Charleston, S.C., and Jessica Jones of Daphne will represent the southeast in the American Association for Justice (AAJ) mock trial competition in West Palm Beach, Fla., April 2-5.

The regional event included teams from law schools at the University of Alabama, the University of Georgia, Georgia State University, Mercer University, Loyola University-New Orleans and Faulkner University.

The 2009 team will try to emulate the success of another Cumberland team that captured the national AAJ title in 2008. Mike Rasmussen is team coach.

Earlier this spring, a Cumberland team also qualified to represent the region in National Trial Competition in San Antonio, Texas, March 25-28.

"The National Trial Competition and the AAJ Competition are the most prestigious mock trial competitions in the country," said Cumberland dean John L. Carroll. "It is a real tribute to our students and coaches that we will have teams in both national championships."

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.