Moot points
U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. ’76, J.D. ’79, joked with a crowd in Austin Hall that he determined from the start of his time at Harvard Law School (HLS) to be part of its historic moot court event. “I decided very early on in my first semester that I wanted to participate in an Ames final,” said Roberts, “and I decided the easier way would be to get appointed chief justice.” The HLS alumnus made good on that decision Tuesday evening (Nov. 16) as one of three judges presiding over the final of the rigorous competition for third-year HLS students. The two other federal judges of the competition were Julia Smith Gibbons of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, and Diana E. Murphy of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Established in 1911, the Ames Moot Court Competition unfolds in three...