Moot points

Legal Times doesn't just live in D.C. Checking in from Nashville, where I am serving as one of dozens of judges in the annual First Amendment Moot Court competition, sponsored jointly by the Vanderbilt University Law School Moot Court Board and Freedom Forum First Amendment Center. See here for details. It’s a great event that always restores one’s faith that, as endangered as First Amendment rights might be, a new generation is coming into the profession that is well-schooled and immersed in First Amendment values. Thirty-five teams are here – representing law schools ranging from the University of Virginia to Boalt Hall, University of Georgia to Boston College. We’re in the middle of early rounds, but it’s clear already that these students are ready for some of the thorniest First Amendment issues. Topics have ranged from national security to privacy, but this year’s might be the trickiest of all: commercial speech. Tougher still, the problem involves regulation of lawyer advertising. Teams are struggling over what level of First Amendment protection such expression deserves. Since the Supreme Court hasn’t clearly answered the question, it’s hard to expect the students to do so. More later… Tomorrow, the final rounds will be judged by distinguished judges from the Sixth Circuit and from Tennessee courts.