Baylor Law Transactional Teams Take Two Big Wins to Start Competitive Season
The Baylor Law team of Tristan Kaisharis(L) and R.J. Ammons (R) with Coach/Professor of Law Allen Page (Center) after their win at the 2021 UCLA Transactional Law Competition
WACO, Texas -
On March 6, the Baylor Law team of Tamer Abouras, Gavin Jaco, and Josh Marquette swept the Duke Interscholastic Transactional Law Competition, winning both Best Buyer Draft & Mark-Up and First Place (Buyer's Side). The team of Audrey Edwards, Jackson Hayden, and Daniel Yu took Third Place (Buyer's Side) in the same competition.
Just one week earlier, on February 26, the Baylor Law team of R.J. Ammons and Tristan Kaisharis was awarded Best Negotiation (Seller's Counsel) at the 2021 UCLA Transactional Law Competition as the team that accumulated the highest point total of all teams representing the seller side of the transaction in the negotiation portion of the competition.
Under the direction of their coach, Professor Allen Page, who joined the faculty of Baylor Law as a full-time professor in the Summer of 2020, Baylor Law's transactional teams are competing against teams from strong traditional transactional programs and shaking up the competitive landscape. Other than Baylor Law's premier competition, The Closer (at which Baylor Law, as the host, does not field a team) there are only a few national interscholastic transactional law competitions. Baylor Law has now won at two of the three other major competitions and will also compete at the third event hosted by the University of Denver Law and UMKC Law later this spring.
"I am beyond proud of how our students have performed so far in this year's transactional competitions, partly because of their ultimate success, but mostly because of their collective commitment to learn how to practice M&A with excellence," stated team coach and Baylor Law professor Allen Page. "While the excitement of these competition wins last for a season, the skills these students have learned will provide them a head start as they enter practice and assist them throughout their careers," he added.
The team celebrates after sweeping the Duke Interscholastic Transactional Law Competition. From L-R, Gavin Jaco, Josh Marquette, Professor Allen Page, and Tamer Abouras.
At the competition at UCLA, law students from around the country drafted and negotiated a Stock Purchase Agreement concerning a major healthcare company's acquisition of a medical diagnostics manufacturing firm. At the Duke competition, law students from around the country drafted and negotiated a Stock Purchase Agreement to effectuate the purchase of a majority stake in a trendy cosmetics upstart by a major player in the beauty and cosmetics industry. At each competition, teams were randomly assigned to either the buyer's or seller's side, drafted a stock purchase agreement that aligned with the parties' Letter of Intent, and then "marked up" an opposing team's draft of the same agreement. After the drafting and mark-up phase, the teams competed in two rounds of negotiations against other teams.
"The success of these transactional law teams is just one way in which our efforts in the transactional law area are bearing fruit," stated Professor Beth Miller, who holds the M. Stephen and Alyce A. Beard Chair in Business and Transactional Law at Baylor Law. As further explained by Professor Miller, "Baylor Law has always produced lawyers who are a step ahead when they enter practice, but we have been very intentional about enhancing our curriculum and other aspects of our transactional law program in recent years. Our goal is for first-year transactional associates to be ready and able to contribute to their firm's goals on day one. The rigor and practical focus of our efforts in the transactional law area, like that in our renowned litigation program, equip students to hit the ground running upon graduation."
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Established in 1857, Baylor Law was one of the first law schools in Texas and one of the first west of the Mississippi River. Today, the school has more than 7,500 living alumni. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Baylor Law has a record of producing outstanding lawyers, many of whom decide upon a career in public service. Baylor Law boasts two governors, members or former members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, two former directors of the FBI, U.S. ambassadors, federal judges, justices of the Texas Supreme Court and members of the Texas Legislature among its notable alumni. In its law specialties rankings, U.S. News & World Report ranked Baylor Law's trial advocacy program as one of the top 5 in the nation. Baylor Law School is also ranked #50 in the magazine's 2019 edition of "America's Best Graduate Schools." The National Jurist ranks Baylor Law as one of the "Best School for Practical Training," and #4 in the nation in its most recent "Best Law School Facilities" listing. The Business Insider places Baylor Law among the top 50 law schools in the nation. Baylor Law School received the 2015 American Bar Association Pro Bono Publico Award, making it only the third law school in the nation to be honored with the award since the award's inception in 1984. Learn more at baylor.edu/law
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Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 17,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more at baylor.edu
