85144031_3210386182323918_5063956846474166272_n.jpg

Brandy Perry, JD ‘20 and Megan Spicer, JD ‘20 began competing together during their first year at Quinnipiac Law School when, as 1Ls, they tried out for the Society for Dispute Resolution (SDR) Competition Team. They won Best Client Counseling at that intramural competition and competed later that academic year in the 2018 ABA Regional Client Counseling Competition, where they advanced to the semifinals. Meg and Brandy became good friends early in law school and credit that friendship as helping them know each others’ strengths.

Brandy and Meg placed fourth overall in the preliminary round of their region's 2020 ABA Client Counseling Competition, again making it to the semi-final round. In the final round of the regional competition they placed second; but, unfortunately, only the first-place team advances to the national competition. 

Much to their surprise, however, Meg and Brandy were not done competing. After the national competition became virtual, several teams dropped out; and Meg and Brandy were invited to compete at the ABA National Client Counseling Competition, which, while hosted by Quinnipiac Law School, would now take place virtually. Initially, Brandy and Meg were hesitant to compete in the new virtual format, but decided they had nothing to lose, as they were expecting only to be hosting, not competing, in the nationals. In the preliminary round they placed sixth, tying with the same team that had won the Regional Competition. As the sixth-place seed, they had to compete against the first-place team in the semifinal round -- and they prevailed and advanced to the final round. It was a very close final round of the competition, with almost an hour of deliberation by the judges. In the end, the judges unanimously selected Meg and Brandy as the 2020 National Champions, in large part because they were the most genuine and natural, in additional to being very skilled.

Because the entire national competition was done remotely, Brandy and Meg “met” with their clients via Zoom, with everyone in separate locations. This presented some challenges, as the extensive teamwork required for this competition had the potential to be limited by a virtual platform. They took advantage, however, of Zoom's private chat function, which simulated the notes they would normally have shared on paper during an in-person competition. There were also a few hiccups along the way, including one client who remained muted at the beginning of one of their counseling sessions.

Meg and Brandy were the only team to hold all their meetings completely remotely, even from each other, in separate locations. (At the time, lock-down orders varied from state-to-state) This fact ultimately helped them in the long run, as they became very comfortable using Zoom sooner than the other teams. When interviewed, they said: “It feels good. It’s been a fantastic circle, to have started together as 1Ls competing in the intramural to ending as 3Ls who are national champions. This feels like an incredible redemption arc.” 

Brandy and Meg added a few final thoughts after participating in this virtual competition:

  • Adaptability will be crucial for the future of law.

  • Remote meetings are not as difficult or awkward as anticipated.

  • This experience gave them critical skills they will need to succeed in the future.

  • The Zoom platform is incredibly flexible and provides a lot of opportunities for the dispute resolution field.