Craven Competition

February 14, 2019 

 

As faculty advisor of the J. Braxton Craven, Jr. Memorial Moot Court Competition, I write to announce that we are ending this competition after forty-two very successful years. We thank all of the fine law school moot court teams, faculty advisors, and distinguished judges who have participated so ably over the years. This competition has been organized and staffed by second- and third-year UNC law students, who wrote the problem, graded the briefs, recruited the judges, and managed the rounds of competition. 

 

Our goal has been to put on a rigorous competition that realistically replicated an appellate argument before the United States Supreme Court on constitutional issues. We are proud that our problems presented many issues that were soon thereafter in fact argued in the Supreme Court. 

 

The University of North Carolina School of Law created this competition to honor the memory of Judge J. Braxton Craven, who was a highly regarded judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from North Carolina and occasional teacher at the law school in constitutional law. Judge Craven was a champion of civil rights and press freedom. He passed away in 1977 while attending a term of court in Richmond, Virginia at the age of fifty-nine. 

 

This competition began in 1978, the year after Judge Craven’s death. For the last thirty-three years, the faculty advisor for the competition has been a former Craven law clerk on the UNC faculty— S. Elizabeth Gibson for thirty years and Robert P. Mosteller for the last three years. With our retirements, the law school and the student members of the Craven Bench proudly conclude the competition with gratitude for all who have been part of this competition. 

 

Sincerely, 

 

Robert P. Mosteller 

J. Dickson Phillips Distinguished Professor of Law