GOOD NEWS: Law students win 5th straight national moot court title

For a law school, winning a national moot court title is an educational equivalent of winning an NCAA basketball title. After a weekend competition in Florida, a team from the Charleston School of Law has won its fifth — yes fifth! — national tax moot court championship in a row.

“This surely must be one of the most remarkable accomplishments in the annals of legal education,” Dean Andy Abrams said. “For an institution like the Charleston School of Law, which prides itself on its hands on legal education and close working relationship between our faculty and our students, this is particularly gratifying.”

In moot court competitions, teams of students from different law schools argue a legal tax issue in a simulated court proceeding before a panel of judges organized by the Florida Bar Tax Section.

The Charleston School of Law’s team — Anna Boning of Manassas, Va., and Tyler Gilliam of Raleigh, N.C. — marched through the three-day tournament without a loss. On Saturday in the final round, they argued in front of three U.S. Tax Court judges to defeat a nationally-ranked team from Loyola University Chicago School of Law. Leading the students were student coach Joe Schillizzi of Greenville, S.C., and Professor Kristin Gutting, who has now coached five consecutive national championship teams.

“We could not have done this without the local Bar volunteering its time — especially law school alumna Barbara Holmes, who works with the Lowcountry Land Trust and who spent many lunches getting us up to speed on the law regarding conservation easements,” Gutting said.

In addition to being on the winning team, Boning took home the competition award for Best Individual Oralist for having the best oral argument. Gilliam ran a close second.

“We owe much of our success to the support we received from the Charleston School of Law community,” Boning said. “It was truly a team effort.”

In other good news:

Magnolia poetry contest: Magnolia Plantation and Gardens will award prizes totaling more than $2,000 to poets ̶ young and old ̶ who best capture Magnolia as an idyllic “garden of romance.” The poems for the contest should match the style of poets William Wordsworth, Ashley Tennyson and Percy Bysshe Shelley. Submissions to the third annual Garden of Romance Poetry Contest are due March 31, 2016. Winners will be announced in April. Submit entries and learn more at www.magnoliaplantation.com.

Business of Barbecue: The West Ashley-James Island Business Association will host a panel discuss about barbecue that features some of the biggest names in the local barbecue scene. The event, set for 11:30 a.m. Feb. 24, will be at Bessinger’s Barbecue, 1602 Savannah Highway, Charleston. Panelists include Aaron Siegel, owner of Home Team BBQ; Anthony DiBernardo, owner of Swig & Swine; Michael Bessinger of Bessinger’s Barbecue; Rick Agius of Smoky Oak Taproom; Tank Jackson of Holy City Hogs, a heritage farm based in Wadmalaw Island. Cost: $10 for members; $20 for non-members. Lunch included. More info.

Homeless To Hope Fund: Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg last week announced the fund to charitable fund to raise money to provide housing, shelter food and other necessities to Charleston’s homeless population. Co-chairs include Charleston businesswoman Linda Ketner, Palmetto Project Executive Director Steve Skardon and Morris Brown AME Pastor Charles Watkins Jr. You can contribute online through the fund’s new website, a public service of The Brack Group (wonder who that is).