Andrew Haden, a second-year law student at the University of San Diego, recently walked home with a prestigious honor. Haden, a University City High grad and current assistant water polo coach at La Jolla High, was named winner of the 2007 McLennon Honors Moot Court Competition.
The event is one of the more rigorous legal intramural competitions in the nation. The McLennon Honors Moot Court Competition was created to provide students with an opportunity to develop their legal-brief writing and oral advocacy skills and to test these skills in competition.
The course begins with four mandatory classes and several preliminary rounds and culminates in a final round before a panel of judges. The competition is held in honor of attorney and naval aviator Paul McLennon Sr.
Haden was one of more than 70 USD law students who competed in the contest, which was based on United States versus Afshari, a real case that dealt with an individual’s First Amendment right to make donations to a group that had been designated by the secretary of state as a foreign terrorist organization.
Each McLennon competitor wrote and submitted a 25-page written brief on behalf of their randomly assigned side. Oral arguments began in late February and lasted two full weeks. More than 300 San Diego attorneys volunteered their time to help judge the competition.
The last round was held in March, when several hundred people were in attendance to watch the debate between Haden and classmate James DeSilva.
All finalists were given 20 minutes to argue and respond to the questions from a three-judge panel, which included the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown from the Ninth Circuit, the Honorable Rosemary Barkett from the Eleventh Circuit and USD Professor Michael Ramsey.
Haden, who had argued the case nine times ” four times as the United States, five times on behalf of the criminal defendants ” recently spoke with the Village News about the experience and winning the honor.
La Jolla Village News: What was your reaction to winning the McLennon competition? And please talk a little about its importance.
Andrew Haden: Winning the McLennon competition is the greatest thing that has happened to me in law school. The McLennon competition is considered by the law students, and the San Diego legal community, as ‘the’ legal competition of the year. Winning the competition meant that I had shown myself, my classmates and the San Diego legal community that I can stand and deliver a strong legal argument under pressure.
LJVN: You argued the case nine times … talk about the effort involved, your preparation, how you initially felt you did.
Haden: I spent several weeks preparing for the oral arguments. I researched additional elements of the case. I met with fellow competitors several times to discuss potential arguments and legal theories. I created the notes that I used at the podium. Often, an argument will sound great until you hear it out loud.
Therefore, I spent a huge amount of time pacing around my apartment arguing with myself. Some evenings I was confident that things had gone well. Other nights I was sure I had lost. Each night I would anxiously wait to find out if I had advanced. After receiving the news, I would immediately begin refining the argument for the next night. Often, I would have to argue for the United States one night and the alleged terrorists the next. Keeping the various arguments separate in your mind can be extremely challenging, especially as the tournament entered the second week and I began to get tired. Basically, I tried to be sharper and more effective every time I returned to the podium.
LJVN: Talk a little bit about going to University City High and how it helped prepare you for the next level.
Haden: I had an incredible experience at University City High School. I was raised in that community. In fact, my family’s house in University City was the only place I had ever lived until I left for Stanford. As a result, I had a large group of lifelong friends that I went to high school with. In fact, my current roommate is my best friend from high school, Joe Cavaiola. Joe is now an AP Economics teacher at La Jolla High. At UC High I had several incredible teachers that really pushed me to excel. I learned to think and write critically. And I developed a passion for history and political science. I took those skills and passions with me to Stanford and graduated with a degree in political science.
LJVN: What did you learn from your time at Stanford, then going into the U.S. Navy?
Haden: Stanford introduced me to a world much larger than the one I had known at UC High. My freshman dorm had Olympic athletes, National Merit scholars and a representative of almost every one of the 50 states. I think I developed a much greater sense of the world. I joined a fraternity and had my first experiences with leading my peers. Being a naval officer was the greatest thing that could have ever happened to me. The Navy helped me develop a true sense of discipline and work ethic. I also got to live in Mississippi, Rhode Island and Virginia. I was constantly humbled by the personal backgrounds and sacrifices of the sailors that worked for me. Through them, I gained a deeper appreciation of all the amazing opportunities that I had been afforded. I deployed twice during those five years and am very proud of my naval experience.
LJVN: What advice do you have for high school students today as far as studying, preparing to move on when they graduate?
Haden: I am a water polo coach at La Jolla High and so I have the opportunity to interact with a lot of high school students. I encourage them to study hard and do the best they can in all of their classes. But I also encourage them to attend all of the things that will make their high school experience memorable (i.e. air bands, the Friday night basketball game or prom). I do that because I truly believe that being a successful, well-rounded person will provide them with the most options in their future.
Haden’s success has provided him with a number of options.
For now, he is finishing his second year of law school at USD and works part-time for the Honorable Thomas Whelan at the United States District Court.
This summer, he will be working for the law firm Higgs, Fletcher & Mack. In the fall, he begins his third and final year of law school. In addition to school, he will be working at the San Diego District Attorney’s Office and will compete for USD’s National Moot Court Team.