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Pepperdine Celebrates 16th Annual Family Day

Pepperdine hosted family members of law students for its 16th annual Family Day on Friday, Sept. 19, at the School of Law.

Families were welcomed to campus by Dean Ken Starr and attended first-year civil procedure and contracts classes as well as a faculty panel discussion about "A Day in the Life of a Law Student."

In keeping with tradition, the day culminated with the final round of the Armand Arabian Advocacy Tournament-the first intra-school moot court competition of the school year. Third-year student Mat Groseclose took top honors, narrowly defeating classmate Kimberly Hyson in a spirited final round. Both finalists advanced through three elimination rounds before reaching the final competition.

In the final round, the students argued before a mock United States Supreme Court comprised of three distinguished alumni: the Honorable Patricia Bigelow ('86), justice, Second District Court of Appeal, Division Eight; the Honorable Dwayne Moring ('91), judge, San Diego Superior Court; and Bill Haney ('95), supervising attorney for Ventura County's district attorney's office. The judges offered their feedback, praising both students' oral advocacy skills.

The School of Law's Family Day was initiated by Dean Ron Phillips (now dean emeritus) sixteen years ago. "Family Day is an important law school tradition," observed Vice Dean Tim Perrin. "It is a special privilege to welcome the families of our students to the law school so that they can more fully appreciate the distinctive educational experience we offer at Pepperdine."