Anheuser-Busch Press Releases

Chicago, IL (November 4, 2005) - At the annual installation banquet of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) held in Chicago, Illinois, on October 22, 2005, the NAPABA Law Foundation, the sponsor of the Thomas Tang National Moot Court Competition, announced the winners of the competition. The moot court competition is named after the late Judge Thomas Tang who served on the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit from 1977 to 1995. A champion of individual rights and an advocate for the advancement of minorities in the legal profession, Judge Tang was one of the first Asian Americans appointed as a federal judge.

This year’s moot court problem dealt with the constitutionality of the search of an unoccupied automobile which resulted in the seizure of classified State Department documents and a claim of structural error in the indictment and trial of the defendant. The moot court problem was drafted by the Litigation Committee of the Asian American Bar Association of New York. The Litigation Committee’s efforts resulted in a set of issues that challenged the competitors as well as their judges.

84 teams from law schools throughout the country registered in this year’s competition. This is the highest number of teams participating in the competition’s history. The teams competed in six regional competitions throughout the country and the two finalists of each region gathered for the national competition at the NAPABA annual convention in Chicago from October 20 through 22, 2004. The final two teams argued before Justice Thomas Fitzgerald of the Illinois Supreme Court, Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, and Magistrate Judge Marilyn Go of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

This year, the winners, each of whom received a $2,000 scholarship, are Melissa Iyer and Michael Ma from the Southern Methodist University College of Law in Dallas, Texas. The runner-ups, each of whom received a $1,000 scholarship, are Jason Schwartz and Jonathon Mark of the Seattle University School of Law. The Best Brief Award, with a $1,000 scholarship each, also went to Mr. Schwartz and Mr. Mark. The Best Oralist was Daphne Newaz of the University of Houston Law Center who received a $2,000 scholarship.

The $10,000 in scholarships were generously provided by Anheuser-Busch, Inc., a long-time supporter and sponsor of the Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition. “The Anheuser-Busch Companies and its family of wholesalers are pleased to congratulate the 2005 winners of the annual Thomas Tang National Moot Court Competition” said David L. Kim, Director of Asian Marketing and Community Relations for Anheuser-Busch, Inc. “Our commitment to supporting leadership development through the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association has been key to recognizing and nurturing the new leaders in the Asian Pacific American communities. We appreciate our long-standing partnership with the NAPABA Law Foundation and look forward to continuing to work together to produce the best and brightest of the next generation.”

The NAPABA Law Foundation also gratefully acknowledges the Competition’s law firm sponsors of Powell, Goldstein, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia, and Barron & Budd, Dallas, Texas.

The NAPABA Law Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization established by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association to provide financial support for legal education and legal services to the Asian Pacific American community. For more information about the NAPABA Law Foundation and its programs, please contact Mr. Les Jin, NAPABA Executive Director, at (202) 626-7693 or ed@napaba.org.