May It Please the Court...

Today I represented the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, arguing that the police did not violate the defendant's Fourth Amendment rights. Though it might have been a fictional case, being in a real courtroom today arguing the case was exhilarating.

When I was in high school visiting DC for a law conference, I actually sat in the gallery of the DC Superior Court armed robbery trial. Right as the trial ended, the judge stopped us and told us his story about becoming a lawyer and the importance of lawyers for society. It felt like things were coming full circle as I approached the podium in the very same courthouse and presented my own case.

Though I had done public speaking competitions and debates before, it was nothing like today (though these things definitely did help). It was such a crazy and fun experience presenting my case and being grilled today on case law for 13 minutes by my prof who was a former lawyer, my deans fellow, and another lawyer pretending to be appellate judges.

Though all of us arguing in our round were so pumped up and wanted to do another round of arguments, we were also all glad that our class is finally done. And now I get to go from arguing in the courtroom to cheering on UCLA playing on the basketball court. GO BRUINS!