The College of Law celebrates its Advocacy Program’s National Trial League (NTL) as among the top-scoring entries in the Student Development category of Bloomberg Law’s Law School Innovation Program.
Professor Todd Berger, director of advocacy programs
The College of Law created and launched the NTL in 2021 as a new trial competition that brings together 12 top national law school trial teams to compete in a season-long format resembling a traditional sports league. The biweekly matches are conducted virtually using short fact patterns.
The NTL is composed of two conferences of six teams. The teams compete in biweekly matches through seven rounds in their conference and in one cross-conference match. The top two teams from each conference advance to the playoffs. This year, the championship match was held in person at the College of Law.
“The College of Law is honored to be recognized by Bloomberg Law in the Student Development category for our nationally ranked Advocacy Program’s National Trial League,” says College of Law Dean Craig M. Boise. “At its heart, the NTL is a dynamic experiential opportunity for aspiring trial lawyers across the country to hone their advocacy skills in the courtroom, under conditions that simulate the pressure of appearing before a bench of judges.”
NTL organizer Professor Todd Berger, director of advocacy programs, says, “Before the NTL, inter-collegiate trial competitions occurred over the course of a few days and featured long, complex fact patterns. Most real-world trials involve much shorter fact patterns and are conducted over a few hours, particularly bench trials.”
The College of Law’s Innovation Law Center also received recognition from Bloomberg Law as a high-scoring program in the Innovation and Experience category.
Bloomberg Law’s Law School Innovation Program identifies, recognizes and connects law school faculty, staff and administrators who are pioneering educational innovations that benefit their students, their schools, and the legal field. Through the Law School Innovation Program, Bloomberg Law seeks to acknowledge these innovators while raising overall awareness of innovation in legal education.
