American Heritage High School team wins Florida Bar High School Moot Court Competition
American Heritage Broward students Katerine Fateev and Jonathan Schwartz won this year’s Florida Bar High School Appellate Brief Writing & Moot Court Competition conducted by The Florida Bar Law Related Education Committee and the Bar’s Appellate Practice Section. The two-part program offers an opportunity to learn about the appellate process and what it is like to present a case in a true-to-life court experience.
Katerine Fateev and Jonathan Schwartz from American Heritage High School – Broward were crowned champions of the 2024-2025 Florida Bar High School Appellate Brief Writing & Moot Court Competition , which concluded with its final rounds on April 1-2 in Tallahassee.
Competing before the Florida Supreme Court, the duo emerged as the top team in the state, showcasing their legal reasoning and oral advocacy skills in a true-to-life appellate court experience.
The competition is conducted by The Florida Bar Law Related Education Committee and the Bar’s Appellate Practice Section. The two-part program offers an opportunity to learn about the appellate process and what it is like to present a case in a true-to-life court experience.
Students participating in the competition wrote briefs on a fictitious case involving seizure and evidentiary standards, which were graded by practicing attorneys and teams were invited to present oral arguments in the Semifinal Round before appellate judges of the First District Court of Appeal on April 1. A statewide Final Round between the top two teams was held at the Florida Supreme Court on April 2.
American Heritage High School champions were assisted by school sponsor Nikki Laurie and attorney coach Laura Burkhalter. American Heritage’s Fateev was recognized as the Best Oralist in the Final Round.
Second place went to Ethan Williams and Zoe Priolo from Bell Creek Academy.
Other teams competing in the semi finals included:
- Beachside High School – St. Johns County
- Taylor County High School – Taylor County
- Hialeah Gardens High School – Miami-Dade County
- William R. Boone High School – Orange County
The Florida Bar High School Appellate Brief Writing and Moot Court Competition program is designed to provide students the opportunity to learn critical thinking skills, legal reasoning, analysis, and professionalism, in addition to the structure and function of the courts and legal process.
Visit The Florida Bar Moot Court page for more information and links to the broadcasts of the competition.
