Bowing out when given a chance to jump in? It’s not part of 2L Jacob Wilson’s DNA.
Throughout his time at Berkeley Law, Wilson’s varied interests have led him to a dizzying array of endeavors. He co-leads two student organizations and a pro bono initiative, serves on the editorial board of two journals, holds leadership positions at two other student groups, and is a student representative on the law school’s Clerkship Committee.
Even so, Wilson didn’t hesitate when given the opportunity to compete in a major national mock trial competition, the Shark Beach Showdown, in Florida. Partnering with three other Berkeley Law students, the team went undefeated in the preliminary rounds and placed second against competition programs that (unlike Berkeley Law) mostly recruit college mock trial standouts.
The communications director for Maryland U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin from 2021 to 2024 and an intern at the San Francisco Sheriff’s Office last summer, Wilson recounts the collaboration and camaraderie that fueled an exhilarating experience within Berkeley Law’s Advocacy Competitions Program.
Why do I compete on the mock trial team out of all of Berkeley Law’s fulfilling extracurricular opportunities? A thrilling weekend of professional and personal growth at the prestigious Shark Beach Showdown mock trial competition hosted by Nova Southeastern University’s Shepard Broad College of Law provides the answer.
The competition’s case involved a boating-under-the-influence crash that left a young woman dead and led prosecutors to bring charges against a star baseball player. Against steep odds, Berkeley Law’s four-student team finished as the undefeated first seed heading into the playoff rounds and ultimately finished second out of 24 teams.
But what made the weekend special wasn’t just our final standing. It was witnessing three of my friends transform from obviously brilliant but slightly uncertain students into passionate, disciplined advocates ready for a career in the courtroom.
None of the members of our team (1L Jenny Jeschke, 2L Geronimo Owen, 3L Chloe Winnett, and me) had prepared a mock trial case before law school. Leading up to the tournament, each of us put in our best effort, but our cases were undeniably shaky. Geronimo and I were so busy with other law school responsibilities we could only put so much time into case preparation. As a 1L, Jenny was still developing her courtroom voice and confidence. What brought us together was Chloe.
Chloe Winnett is the type of person who has excelled at virtually everything she’s done in her life. Her easy grasp of the law led to a highly successful three years at Berkeley Law and a coveted post-graduation offer from leading plaintiffs’ law firm Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein.
But somewhere along the line Chloe got it in her head that she wasn’t outstanding at mock trial. She was dead wrong about this — as a fellow Trial Team member, I’ve watched her impress coaches and advocates for two years — but I’m selfishly glad she felt this way because her doubt gave our team purpose.This was Chloe’s last competition before graduating, and we were not going to let her go home empty-handed.
Knowing what was at stake, the team locked in when we arrived at the tournament and met up with our coach Margi Schierberl ’15, a Berkeley Law graduate and Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. Our second coach, criminal defense attorney Todd Bequette, provided guidance and support from back in California.
Margi channeled our desire to help Chloe win into a disciplined intensity that kept us working on our cases late into the night. As the hours of practice ticked by and no one mentioned sleeping, I could tell something special was happening.
Rising to the occasion
When the competition began the next day, Jenny, Geronimo, and Chloe were different advocates. Jenny, one of the youngest competitors at the tournament, stunned opponents with a commanding opening statement delivered as if she’d been in the courtroom for years. Geronimo’s closing statement blew holes through opposing teams’ theories and won Best Close of the tournament. Chloe’s objections were so well reasoned and forcefully argued that multiple teams had to awkwardly ask the court for extra time to come up with a response. I gave it everything I had and went undefeated in my rounds.
Chloe’s newfound confidence was a rallying point for the team. I strive to be a good-natured, grounding force for my friends and colleagues, but during the trials that weekend, it was the poised and determined Chloe who grounded me.
Each night of the tournament, we repeated our intense training sessions. Each day we got better. The final ballots showed one of our names listed as “Best Advocate” in every round.
Here’s what makes our success even sweeter: I know that the light years of progress each of us achieved will go toward promoting social change through trial advocacy.
Geronimo came to Berkeley Law to become a public defender because of his community’s experience interacting with the criminal justice system. Jenny is drawn to public defense because of her work prior to law school with the gang rehabilitation program Homeboy Industries. Chloe will be joining Lieff Cabraser to forward plaintiff-side trial advocacy when she graduates this spring. I intend to pursue criminal justice reform as a prosecutor here in the Bay Area.
I’m tremendously thankful to the Trial Team Directors, Jenna Forster ’22 and Spencer Pahlke ’07, for putting their faith in a group of promising but green students. That ethos is central to the team, which makes an effort to recruit students with no previous mock trial experience. The results speak for themselves: Berkeley Law’s Trial Team ranked third in the country going into 2026.
The weekend was a model of the type of experiential learning central to a Berkeley Law education: A group of students deepened their knowledge of the law by working to elevate each other in pursuit of a common goal. When I step into the courtroom in a few years’ time, I will feel ready to serve my community because of the exceptional trial advocacy education and mentorship I received at Berkeley Law.