Finalists and final round judges -- Ninth Annual National First Amendment Moot Court Competition at Vanderbilt University. First Runner-up Team of Kathy Ridenoure Schillaci and Hastings L. Hanshaw, University of Arkansas School of Law, front row at right. (Click on photo for larger image and additional names.)

Kathy Ridenoure-Schillaci of Lowell, and Hastings Hanshaw of Cabot took second place in the Ninth Annual Vanderbilt Law School First Amendment Moot Court Competition on February 27, 1999  in Nashville, Tennessee.  Ridenoure and Hanshaw are both third year students at the University of Arkansas School of Law.  They were coached by Professor Kathryn Sampson, Research Associate Professor in the law school's legal research and writing program.

Hanshaw and Ridenoure competed in a field of 36 schools from across the country on February 26-27 in Nashville, TN.  They defeated the University of Texas in the quarterfinals, South Texas in the semi-finals, and then lost to Brooklyn in a 2-3 vote in the finals.

Ridenoure’s oral advocacy drew individual praise from Judge Louis F. Oberdorfer and Judge Gilbert S. Merritt III, both distinguished judges who presided over the final rounds.  Judge Oberdorfer was nominated in 1977 by President Carter to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.  Judge Merritt, who was nominated in 1977 by President Carter to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Ridenoure and Hanshaw competed in the preliminary rounds against teams from Duke, Detroit/Michigan State, DePaul and Washburn.  They met Univ. of Texas in the Quarterfinals, South Texas in the Semi-finals, and Brooklyn in the final round.

Some of the other schools in the competition included Univ. of San Diego, Univ. of Georgia, Georgia State, TM Cooley, Stetson, Ohio State, Cal-Hastings, Univ. of Wisconsin, Pepperdine, Univ. of New Mexico, Brigham Young University, William & Mary, American, Arizona State.

Univ. of Texas won the best brief award; Georgia State won runner-up best brief.  San Diego won best oralist; Brooklyn won runner-up best oralist.  Brooklyn won the competition; and the University of Arkansas was the runner-up team.  DePaul and South Texas were in the semi-finals with Arkansas and Brooklyn.  In the quarterfinals:  South Texas San Diego, Arkansas, Texas, Georgia State, DePaul, Brooklyn, and Georgia.

The hypothetical appeal arose after the high school officials demanded the student remove a picture of the confederate flag from a personal home page the student had created in a web page course offered by the school.  When she refused, the principal removed her from the course, deleted the web page, and refused to give her credit for completing the course.  The student's mother sued on behalf of the student.  A federal district court granted summary judgment in favor of the school.  A federal court of appeals reversed.  This fictitious appeal to the United States Supreme Court followed.