The final argument of the 2001 Harvard Law School Ames Moot Court Competition was held today, November 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Ames Courtroom. For the first time in the history of the competition, the arguments were Webcast to a worldwide audience on the Internet.
The judges gave the Best Team award to the Honorable Stanley Mosk Memorial Team which represented the respondent, BargainHunter.com. The Best Brief award also went to the Mosk Memorial Team, and Benjamin L. Hatch won the Best Oralist award.
Judging the arguments of the student finalists were the Honorable Michael Boudin, Chief Judge of First Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals; the Honorable Stephanie K. Seymour, Tenth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals; and the Honorable Alex Kozinski of the United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.
The case, Jane Smith, et al. v. BargainHunter.com, involved the selling of personal data without affirmative consent. The Respondent, BartainHunter.com, has customers fill out “wish lists” that include detailed information concerning their product interests and shopping preferences. BargainHunter combines wish list and transactional information into detailed, personally identified customer profiles. The Petitioners, Jane Smith, et al, argued the selling of these profiles constituted a violation of the Ames Consumer Privacy Act.
The Honorable Stanley Mosk Memorial Team was comprised of Daniel L. Geyser, Benjamin L. Hatch, Kelly M. Jaske, Danielle E. Rolfes, Benjamin Souede, and Justin Dillon. Representing the petitioner was the Honorable John Minor Wisdom Memorial Team which included Jason Blackstone, Laura Rinzel Braden, Neil Cave, Bethany Rubin, David Turetsky, and Robert Klinck.
The Ames Moot Court Competition is sponsored by the student-run Board of Student Advisers and the Office of the Dean. Two preliminary rounds, each on a different case, were held during the students’ second year at the School. The final case research, planning, and writing includes several consecutive 70-hour weeks for the students. Legal briefs are prepared by the students, with no help from faculty or lawyers.