On November 12 and 13, 2004 the Southern Illinois University School of Law hosted the 13th annual National Health Law Moot Court Competition. Twenty-one teams of second and third year law students representing law schools from around the country entered the Competition which is sponsored each year by the Southern Illinois University School of Law's Center for Health Law and Policy, as well as the School of Medicine's Department of Medical Humanities, the American College of Legal Medicine, and the American College of Legal Medicine Foundation. In this year's Competition students argued a hypothetical case before the United States Supreme Court involving a pregnant woman who abused prescription drugs and was taken into custody by the state to protect the fetus during her pregnancy. The problem was written by Professor Jessica Berg of the Case Western University School of Law.

The team of Darla Canon, Marianne Green, and Carrie Martin of the South Texas College of Law placed first in the Competition. Their school will receive a $1,000 scholarship grant from the American College of Legal Medicine Foundation. This team also authored the runner-up Best Brief for which a $250 scholarship grant is awarded by the SIU School of Law's Center for Health Law and Policy.

Second place was won by a team representing the University of Tulsa College of Law including Jeffrey Heater and Jason Lile. The school will receive a $750 scholarship grant from the ACLM Foundation. This team was also recognized for writing the Best Brief submitted by the participating schools and will receive a $500 scholarship grant for this as well.

The University of New Mexico School of Law's team consisting of Cody Rogers and Bradley Sims won third place in the Competition and will receive a $500 scholarship grant. Carrie Martin of South Texas was chosen as both the Best Preliminary Round and Best Overall Oralist in the Competition. She will be awarded a $750 scholarship.

The judges for the final round of the Competition included Judge Julio M. Fuentes of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, Judge J. Phil Gilbert of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, and Theodore R. LeBlang, JD of Springfield, IL, President of the American College of Legal Medicine.

A panel from the American College of Legal Medicine judged the briefs submitted by the students participating in the Competition: Joseph Barrette, JD, Charles Ellington, MD, JD, Bernard Friedland, BchD, MSc, JD, Mark Hall, JD, Alan Hoffman, JD, Charles Hollen, MD, JD, Alicejane Lippner, MS, MD, JD, and Sana Loue, JD, PhD, MPH.

The Competition was organized by W. Eugene Basanta, Professor of Law at the Southern Illinois University School of Law and a Professor in the Department of Medical Humanities at the School of Medicine and by Professor Cheryl Anderson of the SIU School of Law who directs the School's moot court program.

At the Awards Reception held on Saturday evening following the Competition, the sponsors, the Southern Illinois University School of Law, the School of Medicine, Department of Medical Humanities, and the American College of Legal Medicine, announced that they will again sponsor the National Health Law Moot Court Competition in 2005. The 2005 Competition is tentatively scheduled for November 11 and 12, 2005.

Photos available upon request. For further information contact W. Eugene Basanta, Professor of Law, Southern Illinois University School of Law, Carbondale, Illinois 62901-6804, (618) 453-8748; basanta@siu.edu