Category: News

the front door of hulston hall

April 8, 2026

CALI Winners Awarded at 2026 Edna Nelson Banquet

The Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI) Excellence for the Future Awards recognize students with the highest grade in each course at Mizzou Law. These were awarded at the annual Edna Nelson Awards Banquet this April. Below are the CALI Award winners for the 2025 calendar year. A full list of all Edna Nelson award winners can be found here: Edna Nelson Program Spring 2025 CALI Winners Summer 2025 CALI Winners Fall 2025 CALI Winners…

brynna smith

April 7, 2026

Mizzou Law 3L publishes paper in American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

Brynna Smith, a 3L at Mizzou Law, recently published a paper in the student galley of the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, which is a significant organization in the bankruptcy field. Her paper, “Detroit v. Everybody: Governance Reform and the Limits of Chapter 9” explores Detroit’s descent from a thriving industrial city to the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. The piece suggests that Detroit’s experience may be especially significant at a time of increased debt and economic uncertainty. It analyzes how Chapter 9’s treatment of municipal bankruptcy contrasts with Chapter 11’s treatment of business…

llm class of 2000

April 6, 2026

Harbingers of Peace: 25 Years of the LL.M. in Dispute Resolution

by Tanner O’Neal Riley In 1999, the University of Missouri School of Law established the first LL.M. in dispute resolution program in the United States. At a time when most graduate law degrees focused on tax, finance or intellectual property, Missouri charted a different path: training lawyers not just to litigate disputes, but to resolve them. The choice was radical. The program grew out of intellectual groundwork laid years earlier at the Center for the Study of Dispute Resolution, founded in 1984. Under leaders such as Len Riskin and later Professor John Lande, the center pushed legal education to confront…

students hold third place trophy

March 23, 2026

Mizzou Law students shine in international negotiation competition

Two teams of Mizzou Law students excelled at the recent National Black Law Students Association Nelson Mandela International Negotiation Competition. The team of Shyann Sampson and Josie Johnson finished in third place out of 20 teams from across the country, while Mackenzie White and Samiat Solebo finished in the quarterfinals.

the front door of hulston hall

March 18, 2026

Mizzou Law named to Justice & Opportunity Honor Roll

Mizzou Law has been named to the National Jurist’s preLaw Magazine Opportunity & Justice Honor Roll. Mizzou Law is one of only 41 law schools from across the country that earned at least an A- grade for their commitment to initiatives, partnerships or strategies that reflect the mission of expanding access to legal education. The Justice & Opportunity Honor Roll recognizes law schools for leadership in expanding access to legal education. National Jurist’s criteria places emphasis on the structures, policies and programs law schools support that create pathways into the legal profession. The Honor Roll reflects leadership across four primary…

luke nutwell, andrew durham, paige harris, thomas yang and thom lambert

March 3, 2026

Mizzou Law teams excel in national moot court competition

Two Mizzou Law teams competed in the Global Antitrust Institute’s Moot Court Competition, which both teams reaching at least the quarterfinals. Competing against teams from some of the top law schools in the country, 2L Andrew Durham and 3L Thomas Yang reached the quarterfinals in the competition and also won the award for best brief in the entire competition. 3Ls Paige Harris and Luke Nutwell defeated a team from the University of Michigan to advance to the semi-finals, where they argued in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. That team lost to the eventual champion…

mizzou law mock trial teams

Feb. 24, 2026

Mizzou Law Mock Trial teams excel in regionals

Mizzou Law mock trial teams excelled at the recent National Trial Competition regional, hosted by Washburn University in Kansas. Mizzou Law’s two teams, Team Black and Team Gold competed against 24 teams from law schools across six states, including Missouri, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas and New Mexico. Team Black, featuring Rachel Carlson, Steven Flanders and Jordan Vitiello, won its first four trials, making it all the way to the Final Four before being narrowly defeated. Mizzou Law Team Black finished in the final four of the competition. Team Gold, featuring Grant Slusher, Dallas Welling and Grayson Henry, also…

a breakfast table with pancakes and american flags

Feb. 23, 2026

Pancakes for Roger supports Mizzou Law Veterans Clinic

Mizzou Law and the Veterans Clinic are celebrating their annual Pancakes for Roger event all February to support the clinic. Pancakes for Roger is a nationwide campaign held each February in honor of Major General Roger E. Combs, who served our country for more than 39 years in the Marine Corps, Army, and Air Force. Throughout the month of February, Combs and Company makes a donation to the Mizzou Law Veterans Clinic for every photo shared using the hashtag #PancakesForRoger. Additionally, Mizzou Law is grateful for a generous donation from Gary and Carol Smith this year as…

Hulston Hall

Feb. 19, 2026

Mizzou Law alumnus nominated by president for Eighth Circuit judge seat

Mizzou Law alumnus Justin Smith, ’10, has been nominated to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Smith has served as Deputy Counsel for the Missouri Governor’s Office, General Counsel for the Missouri Department of Agriculture and currently works for Justin Otis Law Group in St. Louis. Smith graduated from Mizzou Law as a member of the Order of the Coif, Order of the Barristers and Order of the Scribes. Smith’s appointment comes on the heels of two other federal appointments of Mizzou Law alumni: Judge Cristian Stevens was appointed as…

Jake Hall and Ethan Uhrlaub

Feb. 2, 2026

Mizzou Law team competes in ABA national competition

Mizzou Law 2Ls Jake Hall and Ethan Uhrlaub competed in the ABA Negotiation Competition National Finals last weekend in Chicago. The Mizzou Law team, coached by Professor Don Seitz, finished the first round of the national competition with the highest score of all the teams. They finished the competition following the second round. The team qualified for the national competition by winning the 2025 American Bar Association regional negotiation competition, beating out teams from top law schools across the Midwest.