Moot Court Competition Features Record Number of Law Schools

Contact: John
Hartgen           

            
Phone: (703)
739-0800             

            
Email: jhartgen@abiworld.org

size='3'>14^TH ANNUAL NATIONAL BANKRUPTCY MOOT COURT
COMPETITION FEATURES RECORD NUMBER OF LAW SCHOOLS

FEBRUARY 15,
2006,
size='3'>Alexandria,
w:st='on'>
size='3'>Va. —The American
Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) and St. John’s University School of Law
will co-sponsor the 14th Annual Chief Judge Conrad B. Duberstein
National Bankruptcy Memorial Moot Court Competition, March 17-20, 2006,
in New York. The event, which is the nation’s only moot court
competition devoted entirely to bankruptcy, is named for Chief Judge
Conrad B. Duberstein, a St. John’s University alumnus and a former
member of the ABI Board of Directors, who passed away in November. The
competition is designed to promote and recognize the finest student oral
and written advocacy on a significant problem in bankruptcy
practice.

This year’s event will
commemorate Chief Judge Duberstein’s lifelong contributions to the
bankruptcy system during a special video tribute at the Gala Awards
Banquet on March 20.

A record 53 teams,
comprised of 2-3 students each, from 38 American Bar Association
(ABA)-accredited law schools will take part in this year’s
competition. Each team argues in at least two preliminary rounds, to be
held on March 18-19 at St. John’s campus
in Queens,

size='3'>N.Y. Each team in
the preliminary round will alternate sides of the argument, with judges
and prominent bankruptcy practioners judging all preliminary rounds and
written briefs.  The
quarterfinal, semi-final and final rounds will be held at the U.S.
Courthouse in
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>Manhattan
on March 20 followed by the Gala Awards Banquet that
evening.

The semi-finals are
judged by bankruptcy judges from
w:st='on'>New
York and around the
country. The final round will be judged by several leading members of
the federal judiciary, including Judge Thomas Ambro (U.S. Court of
Appeals, Third Circuit), Judge Stuart M. Bernstein (Chief Bankruptcy
Judge, S.D.N.Y), Judge Melanie Cyganowski (Chief Bankruptcy Judge,
E.D.N.Y.), Judge Edith Hollan Jones (Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals,
Fifth Circuit) and Judge Jeffrey Sutton (U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth
Circuit).

The ABI Endowment Fund
will present awards of $5,000 to the winning team, $3,000 to the
second-place team, $1,500 to two third-place teams and $1,000 to each
winner of both the best written brief and best oral
advocate.  The awards
banquet will be held at the famous Pier 60, Chelsea Piers. The
University of Connecticut School of Law is the defending champion, while
past winners include Emory University School of Law,

size='3'>University of

size='3'>Miami, William &
Mary, the
size='3'>University of

size='3'>Florida, the

size='3'>University of

size='3'>Alabama,

size='3'>Stetson
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>University
size='3'>and
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>New York

size='3'>University
size='3'>.

For additional information,
including how to register to to attend the dinner honoring Judge
Duberstein, visit
href='/moot/details.html'>
size='3'>http://www.abiworld.org/moot/details.html
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>.

###

ABI is the largest
multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and
education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to
provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy
issues. The ABI membership includes more than 11,000 attorneys,
accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround
specialists and other bankruptcy professionals providing a forum for the
exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI,
visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information,
visit
face='Times New Roman'
size='3'>http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html
face='Times New Roman' size='3'>.