National trial team members Drew Panella, Curtis Seal, and Bianca Svensson competed at the South Texas College of Law's Fifth Annual Mock Trial Challenge April 13-17. One of the few teams composed of only second year law students, the team litigated their way to the quarter-final round before being eliminated. Their efforts placed them in the top eight teams out of more than thirty law schools from across the country.
Panella, Seal, and Svensson competed against students from the University of the Pacific, St. Mary's School of Law, The University of Houston, The University of Pennsylvania, and Stetson School of Law. Bianca Svensson was recognized as an outstanding advocate. The team was coached by Bains Fleming ('07) and Setara Foster ('12).
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. The Wall Street Journal ranks Samford 1st nationally for student engagement and U.S. News & World Report ranks Samford 66th in the nation for best undergraduate teaching and 104th nationally for best value. Samford enrolls 5,683 students from 47 states and 19 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference, and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.
