“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
This Special Edition of the Monday Morning Message is called CSU Law Student Focus. It is intended to highlight and celebrate the individual and group accomplishments of our very talented CSU Law students. The contents are based entirely on submissions by students.
Team Accomplishments
Mock Trial Team
On the weekend of March 6, 2025, the CSU Law Mock Trial Team competed in the Student Trial Advocacy Competition hosted by the American Association of Justice in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The team was led by coaches Julian Emerson, of Reminger Co., and Jed Chedid, of Chedid & Co. and a CSU Mock Trial alumnus. The Plaintiff Team consisted of Jake Wrege, 3L, and Charlie Volz, 2L. The Defense Team consisted of Lina Girgis, 3L (Team Captain) and Koby Adu-Poku, 3L. Our team of four was supported and strengthened by remaining team members Victoria Szep, 2L, John Swansinger, 2L, and John Ohliger, 2L.
Each team enrolled in the competition competed in three initial qualifying rounds. During the first round of competition, Koby Adu-Poku and Lina Gurgis faced William & Mary Law School, ending with a 14-point differential for the defense. During the second round, Jake Wrege and Charlie Volz faced Villanova University Law School; both advocates scored 9/10s across the board, and Jake Wrege presented a flawless, impromptu voir dire of the expert witness. In the third and final qualifying round, Koby and Lina faced University of Akron Law School. As a result, CSU Law won with an 8-point differential, receiving perfect scores on Lina’s opening statement, cross-examination and Koby’s closing argument.
After completing these qualifying rounds, and dominating in two, our team of four advanced to the Semi-Finals on the afternoon of Saturday, March 10, 2025. Due to the Semi-Finals power pairing structure, Cleveland State University’s 8th seed team was set to compete against the 1st seed team - Temple University, the school that hosted this competition. Jake Wrege and Charlie Volz went head to head with the competition's highest rated team in terms of win-loss record, number of ballots won, total point differentials, and total points.
This trial was an intense, high-stakes challenge, as it was Cleveland State University’s only opportunity to secure a spot in the finals and earn a chance to return to the national competition. At the end of trial, Cleveland State University’s last seed team beat Temple University’s first seed team by 5.5 points. In a failed attempt to get Koby Adu-Poku, a witness during the trial, to admit to a statement that contradicted the case problem, Temple University made the swift decision to file an unsupported grievance against our team. After our coach advocated for us, and without permitting any students to provide context to the situation or any remedy for appeal, the committee chose to reduce our score by 7.5 points – turning our team’s celebratory win into a loss by two points.
Our team beat the odds and we are proud of their dedication and passion. Good luck to the 2025-2026 Mock Trial Team, who will be led by Victoria Szep and Charlie Volz!
Individual Accomplishments
Isuraoluwa Adedokun 3L
As the National Director of Career and Professional Development for the National Black Law Students Association, Isura solicited firms to participate in and coordinated the National Career Expo for the National Convention held in Atlanta, Georgia on March 15. At the end of January, Isura and Meagan Holloway-Ragland competed in the Thurgood Marshall Moot Court Competition hosted by Loyola Chicago School of Law. Their team received the best oralist award. Congratulations to our team and their coaches Theophilus Hudson and Emily Stolfer, and alumni supporters Jasmine Taylor, Jeffrey Carr, Brandon Brown, and Brandon Cox.
Sarah Waller, 2L JDO
Sarah was selected in April 2024 to help lead an initiative titled Sworn Docs Reimagined in collaboration with the Legal and Compliance departments at her company. This initiative concluded during the 2024–2025 academic year and was honored with the Mark of Distinction—one of the highest honors in Financial Services awarded to individuals who go above and beyond in driving innovation and impact.
Sydni Porter, 3L
Sydni’s note entitled "Cracking the Facade: Analyzing Ohio's 'Don't Say Gay' Legislation as Disguised Discrimination Under the First and Fourteenth Amendments" was published last month in CSU Law's Journal of Law and Health. To date, it has over 100 downloads.
Stacey Steggert,1L
Stacey was awarded the Moyer Fellowship for 2025. This prestigious fellowship is sponsored by the Chief Justice Thomas J. Moyer Legacy Committee of the Ohio State Bar Association and is supported by the Ohio State Bar Foundation. The fellowship supports independent legal research in areas including alternative dispute resolution and increasing citizen access to the courts. Her faculty sponsor is Professor Heidi Robertson. Her research will focus on improving access to alternative dispute resolution for students with disabilities to ensure their rights to Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). In addition to research, she will host a free community workshop for families of children with disabilities from Cleveland and surrounding areas.
Sean Yates, 3L
Sean has been awarded a 2025 Peggy Browning Fellowship in workplace justice advocacy.
Have a great day. Have a great week.
The views and opinions expressed in my Monday Morning Message are solely my own and do not reflect the views and opinions of the law school or the university.
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My best,
Lee