2009 Linden Cup winners Erica Simms and Ryan Armentrout.

The team of Erica Simms and Ryan Armentrout are winners of the 2009 Linden Cup.

Linden Cup is a mock appellate advocacy competition in which Gonzaga law students, working in pairs, prepare appellate briefs on an assigned problem and then present oral argument before mock tribunals.

During the preliminary rounds, each team presents at least two oral arguments, arguing the case at least once from each side. The competition is based on a team’s forensic (i.e., oral) performance.

The competition is open to viewing by the public.

The Linden Cup is named for Father James Linden, a beloved regent and instructor at GU Law for more than 30 years.

Father Linden established the competition in 1935. He also founded Heidelberg, the ball held the evening of the competition which serves as an opportunity for students to celebrate and honor their peers and faculty.

For the most part, Linden Cup competitors are second-year law students in their final Legal Research & Writing Course. Each team co-authors an appellate brief addressing the legal problems presented by the case. Then, the teams present oral arguments to mock tribunals in head-to-head competition.

The participants are judged upon the quality of their oral presentation, their ability to effectively answer questions, and their knowledge of the factual record and case law. The early competition rounds were judged by Faculty, local attorneys, and Superior Court judges.

The final round of the 2009 competition was judged by three Washington State Supreme Court Justices and one Idaho Supreme Court Justice.