The Harvard Law School Mock Trial Association hosted the first annual Cambridge Clash Invitational Tournament on November 7-9. Teams from Harvard and six other law schools from across the Northeast competed in four preliminary rounds in Wasserstein Hall. The championship round, which took place in the Ames Courtroom, featured Boston College Law School and the University of Albany Law School, with Boston College Law School ultimately taking home the crown.
One Harvard Team consisting of Michael Zhou ’26 and Asa Scott ’26 earned an honorable mention. The other Harvard team, led by captain Rahul Jayaraman ’26 with James Limbaugh ’26, Kieran Clark ’26, Finn Doherty LL.M. ’26, and Grace Jackson ’28, finished in the top half of teams competing. Asa Scott ’26 and Rahul Jayaraman ’26 took home outstanding advocate awards.
The event was masterminded by Dan Cohen ’27, who devised the timely civil case involving retaliatory termination by a protected whistleblower centered on alleged AI-generated video evidence. With the help of the association’s adviser Middlesex County Assistant District Attorney David Yasinovsky, Cohen recruited local attorneys and judges to ensure competitors were evaluated by real practitioners.
For Harvard competitors, the tournament reflected the Mock Trial Association’s growth and camaraderie. “The Mock Trial Association isn’t just about competitions,” said team leader Hudson Patterson ’26. “We invest in making sure our competitors have a support system and a mentor. Nothing bonds people like traveling together and late-night hotel food orders in between cross-examination drills. That feeling of teamwork and a shared mission really brings us close. Win or lose, the support, camaraderie, and community is truly the best feeling.”
Inside the rounds, it was teamwork that made the difference. “Many of the most effective moments of my advocacy came from working with my bench mate, Michael Zhou,” said Asa Scott. “We’d build our theory together, conferring throughout trial to evolve our strategy. If one of us set something up, the other would knock it down. Michael got key admissions that I could use in closing, and vice versa.”
Preparation for the tournament was grueling; students practiced late into the night, balancing coursework with relentless rehearsals in study rooms and over takeout dinners. But Yasinvosky believes that the skills honed during the competition will have far-reaching impact.
“It’s my hope that students parlay the reputations and relationships made at events like this into their legal career,” he said. It was a joy and privilege to be able to contribute to these student advocates’ education in a direct, experiential way.”
The tournament, the first the Mock Trial Association has hosted in three years, was sponsored by Wilson Sonsini and Bloomberg Law.
