(from left to right) Michael Ferachi (’89), LSU Law Dean Alena Allen, Daniel Philipose, Claire Milburn, Hon. James D. Cain, Jr., and Hon. Jerry Edwards, Jr.
Second-year LSU Law student Daniel Philipose was declared the victor of the Dean’s Cup Moot Court Competition on Monday, March 24. He faced off against fellow 2L Claire Milburn to earn the coveted foot-tall solid crystal Dean’s Cup trophy.
“It was an honor to compete in and win this year’s Dean’s Cup competition,” said Philipose “I couldn’t have done it without the support of my family, friends, and the faculty here at LSU Law.”
The final round judges for the Dean’s Cup Moot Court Competition included LSU Law Dean Alena M. Allen, the Hon. James D. Cain, Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Hon. Jerry Edwards, Jr., of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, and Michael D. Ferachi (’89) of McGlinchey Stafford.
“Competitions like Dean’s Cup, as well as other similar opportunities available to students through LSU Law’s Advocacy Program, offer valuable, practical experience, which is shaping me into the legal professional I hope to be one day,” Philipose said.
The Dean’s Cup Moot Court Competition is the last of six internal advocacy competitions offered to LSU Law students throughout the academic year. Students competing for the Dean’s Cup prepare and present appellate oral arguments in a series of real cases that are currently before the United States Supreme Court.
In this year’s final round, the finalists argued Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos, which involved a lawsuit brought by the Mexican government seeking to hold seven major U.S. gun makers and a gun wholesaler responsible for violence committed by Mexican drug cartels with U.S.-made weapons.
At the conclusion of the final round, LSU Law Advocacy Programs announced the newly selected members of the 2025-2025 Board of Advocates.
