The UF chapter of Phi Alpha Delta fielded three teams at the fraternity's 2021 national pre-law conference. (Courtesy photo)
UF Pre-Law Fraternity Earns Top Awards at National Conference
The University of Florida chapter of Phi Alpha Delta (PAD) took home nine awards, including several first-place honors, at the fraternity’s national pre-law conference, held virtually Nov. 3 to 5.
Facing other PAD chapters from across the country, the UF students fielded three teams in the conference’s Pre-Law Mock Trial Competition — and ended up taking first, second and third place in the contest. The results marked 11 consecutive first-place finishes for UF’s chapter.
First place team:
- Megan Simmen (Accounting)
- Ryan Chatoo (Economics and History)
- Yesha Shah (Political Science)
- Logan Stratton (Wildlife Ecology and Conservation)
Second place team:
- Javier Kowalchuk (Political Science)
- Derek Zhang (Economics and Political Science)
- Cayman Forbes (Political Science and International Studies)
- Michelle Topolski (Business Administration)
Third place team:
- Lauren VanHemel (Criminology)
- Brooke Reeves (Economics)
- Kieran Patel (History)
- Heidi Shelton (Political Science)
Abigail Ladwig-Conway, a senior studying history, served as the student coach for all teams. Megan Simmen received a first-place award for the second consecutive time, while all other UF competitors participated for the first time.
Members of the chapter also earned these recognitions:
- Outstanding Attorney, first place: Ryan Chatoo
- Outstanding Attorney, second place: Javier Kowalchuk
- Outstanding Witness, first place: Kieran Patel
- Outstanding Prosecution: UF Team 2
In addition, the chapter received second place for the Don Huston Outstanding Pre-Law Chapter Award. Faculty advisor Brian Cahill, lecturer in the Department of Psychology, earned first place for the Dr. Charles J. Fleener Outstanding Pre-Law Chapter Advisor Award after coming in second place at the previous conference.
“These recognitions exemplify all the late nights, long hours and hard work all three of our competitive teams put into prepping our cases,” said Lauren VanHemel, a member of the third-place team. “We would meet up every Wednesday night in the law school, oftentimes until 11:00 p.m. combing over the details of the case packet and scrimmaging against one another. … Participating in the University of Florida’s competitive mock trial program has created lasting friendships for years to come.”
