Edward C. Stone Moot Court Competition
Stone Moot Court Competition 2025
The Edward C. Stone Moot Court Competition is only open to all second-year JD students,* and runs from late September through mid-November. Students work in teams of two on one of three moot court problems. The Stone participants with the highest combined brief and oral argument scores are invited to participate in the second semester Homer Albers Prize Moot Court Competition. (Note that the number of students invited to participate in the Homer Albers Prize competition may vary based on the number of students competing in Stone, but will be between 16 and 32 students.) Jen Taylor McCloskey, the Executive Director of Advocacy and Legal Skills Programs, will hold an informational meeting for all interested participants early in the September (see dates below).
Competition materials will be posted to this page as they become available. If you are competing, please check this site frequently.
Students do not receive academic credit for their participation in moot court, but participation in Stone is a prerequisite for participation on any of BU Law’s school-funded intramural moot court teams, including teams organized by students and student groups.
*Second-year students who transferred from a different school’s JD program are eligible to participate in Stone. Second-year students who transferred to the JD program from the LLM program cannot participate in Stone until they have completed the Esdaile Moot Court Program. Thus, LLM transfer students are permitted to participate in Stone as 3Ls instead. If you have questions about your eligibility, please contact Jen McCloskey, at jataylor@bu.edu.
2025 Stone Directors: Catherine Bartzen, Seth Kahler, Steven Mitchell
Email: stonemc@bu.edu
NOTE: The dates and information below are for the 2024 Competition. Check back in Summer 2025 for updated Fall 2025 information and dates (which will be similar to the dates below).
Registration
Registration is now open. Please fill out the application form (NOTE: you must log in with your BU Email address to access the form). Applications are due September 24, by 12 p.m. Late applications will not be accepted. Each competitor must individually register.
Competition Rules
Important Competition Dates
Dates are always subject to change, including the problem release date, but any changes will be announced here and via email.
Information Session
Thursday, September 12, 1 – 2 p.m.
Room 101
Link to recording
Application Due Date
Tuesday, September 24, 12 p.m.
Application Form
NOTE: you must log in with your BU Email address to access the form.
Problem Release Date
Thursday, September 26
Brief Writing Workshops [links will be added following the workshop]
Monday, September 30, 1 – 2 p.m. (arrive early if possible!)
All competitors: 1 – 1:40 p.m. in Room 414 (slides + recording; through about 47:00, then switch to your problem)
Breakout Rooms (1:40 – 2 p.m.):
- Problem 1: Room 414 (recording – start at 47:00)
- Problem 2: Room 416 (recording)
- Problem 3: Room 417 (recording)
Brief Writing Office Hours with Jen McCloskey
Note: If you want to attend office hours and these times do not work, let me know and I can extend them in one direction or another.
- Friday, October 4, 2-3pm (hybrid: come to Room 904 or join on Zoom)
- Wednesday, October 9, 1-2pm (Zoom only)
- Tuesday, October 15, 1:30-2:30pm (hybrid: come to Room 904 or join on Zoom)
Brief Due Date
Friday, October 18, by 3 p.m.
Oral Advocacy Workshop
Monday, October 21, 1 – 2 p.m. (slides and recording)
Room 414
Oral Argument Open Practices
All in the Schell Courtroom (602)
October 23: 1-2:30pm
November 1: 1:10-2:30pm
November 7: 1:00-2:00pm
Oral Arguments
Arguments take place at 6:30 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, and at 3 p.m. on Fridays.
See Rules for additional information about scheduling and conflicts.
October 28 – November 1
November 4 – 8
November 11 – 15
Awards Announcement
We will announce the winners of the Best Brief and Best Oralist awards for each problem, as well as the names of the students invited to participate in Albers, at the Stone Awards Reception on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. The Reception will be held in the Charles River Room, and we will have plenty of food!
Problems
Problem Case Files (each problem contains two issues; teammates decide together who is briefing and arguing which issue).
Student Briefs
Argument Schedules
The oral argument schedules will be posted here as they become available. You need to be logged in with a BU email address to view the link. Contact the Help Desk if you have issues!
Week 1 (October 28 – November 1)
Week 2 (November 4 – 8)
Week 3 (November 11 – 15)
Judge Guidance (for attorney judges)
Sample Briefs
Sample briefs are for reference only. Briefs from the Homer Albers Prize competition are longer than allowed under the Stone Competition rules. These samples are intended to give you a sense of what a high-scoring brief from our Albers honors competitions looks like; they may not conform perfectly to the rules (which are different in Stone – in particular, the length requirements are different). You should refer to the Stone Competition rules for format and length restrictions. We have also posted a sample appellate brief written by attorney Peter Brann, a graduate of the Law School and former Homer Albers Prize winner.
Peter Brann – Sample Appellate Brief
Sample Briefs (zip file)