Texas Tech University School of Law earned its 58th national advocacy championship on October 19 as 3L Sophia Jenkins and 2Ls Kiera Figgins and Grant McClure took top honors at the inaugural Chapman, Lewis & Clark Moot Court Invitational in Orange County, California.
The entertainment-law appellate advocacy tournament drew top competitors from across the country. Texas Tech’s champions went 4–0 in preliminary rounds, entering elimination rounds as the top-seeded team. They then defeated the University of Illinois in the Final Four and the University of California San Francisco in the national championship round.
The team also captured several of the tournament’s top individual awards: Jenkins won Best Petitioner’s Brief, Figgins was named the Best Overall Advocate, and Grant was recognized as the Third-Best Overall Advocate.
For Jenkins, the win marked a personal milestone in her growth as a writer and advocate.
“As the team brief writer, the win helped me see how far I have come since beginning law school,” Jenkins said. “I took stylistic risks when drafting, and earning ‘Best Brief’ has boosted my confidence to continue finding my unique voice as an advocate.”
She also expressed gratitude for the law school’s commitment to supporting its competitors.
“I’m a student parent on a limited budget, and I know my teammates have their own circumstances that could have made a trip like this out of reach,” she shared. “I cannot overstate how much I appreciate that Texas Tech Law provides the funding to make these opportunities possible.”
For Figgins and McClure, teamwork—and coaching—were key to their success.
“We realized after our very first practice that our styles complemented each other perfectly,” Figgins said. “Grant has an easy, persuasive presence with judges, while I tend to approach arguments from a more analytical angle. We push each other to be better, and that balance made us such a strong team.”
McClure agreed, crediting both preparation and coaching for the team’s championship run.
“We played to our strengths and trusted our coaching,” McClure said. “Kiera excels at tackling complex legal issues, and her preparation on our trademark issue was second to none. I love the persuasive side—‘selling to the judge,’ so to speak. Professor Sherwin is an elite coach who prepared and supported us from start to finish.”
The competition also offered some unforgettable firsts.
“This was my first trip to California,” Figgins said. “Getting to see the sunset over Catalina Island before such an exciting competition was incredible. And arguing before appellate court justices—it’s hard to describe how rewarding that felt.”
Texas Tech’s second team—3L Hailey Lowery and 2Ls Sarah Blakemore and Kameron Schultz—also excelled, finishing 3–1 in preliminary rounds, with their only loss coming against the same UCSF team Tech later defeated in the final. Lowery’s brief was ranked the second-best Respondent’s brief in the tournament.
Together, the two teams showcased the depth of Texas Tech Law’s nationally recognized advocacy program and the continued excellence of its student advocates.
