Tampa, Fla. and Lansing, Mich. – Cooley Law School students earned a runner-up finish at the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition in September, capping an impressive two-month stretch for the law school’s National Moot Court Teams.
Cooley students Kimberly Ayala, John Johnson and Dahlia Despradel advanced to the championship round of the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition after receiving an invitation to participate just days after Cooley students completed the E. Earle Zehmer National Moot Court Competition in August.
With little time to prepare, Ayala, Johnson and Despradel completed a federal appellate brief in just 13 days and prepared for oral arguments within 15 days. The competition presented students with a complex federal-law problem involving Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act, known as PROMESA, and the Fifth Amendment.
Over the course of the competition, the Cooley team spent more than seven hours presenting courtroom arguments. The students advanced through four preliminary rounds and a quarterfinal round at the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Orlando Division, before competing in the semifinal and championship rounds at Florida A&M University College of Law.
During its run to the final, Cooley defeated teams from the University of Illinois Chicago, two teams from Florida A&M University and a coalition team representing the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Law and Inter American University of Puerto Rico School of Law. Cooley faced Barry University in the championship round, ultimately finishing runner-up in the national competition.
The team’s performance also resulted in a unique opportunity outside the courtroom. U.S. Rep. Darren Soto invited Cooley’s team to Washington, D.C., as guests at a congressional hearing concerning Puerto Rico, with an opportunity to provide public comment on proposed legislation.
“This team accomplished something remarkable in an incredibly short period of time,” said co-coaches Daniel Cardwell and Elpiniki Roussos. “Kimberly, John and Dahlia took on a complicated constitutional issue, prepared a federal appellate brief in less than two weeks and then successfully argued their way to the championship round. The invitation to Washington provides them with another extraordinary opportunity to take the advocacy skills they demonstrated in the courtroom and apply them to the legislative process.”
The competition problem examined Puerto Rico’s financial crisis, PROMESA and a property owner’s Fifth Amendment challenge involving increased taxation. Taking place at the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month, the competition also gave students an opportunity to examine significant legal and constitutional issues affecting Puerto Rico and the people and communities impacted by those issues.
Cooley’s success at the National Puerto Rican Bar Association competition followed a strong showing in August at the E. Earle Zehmer National Moot Court Competition.
The Zehmer competition featured 30 teams representing 15 law schools from across the country, including the University of Florida, Florida State University, University of Miami, Michigan State University and William & Mary.
Cooley competitors included John Johnson, Kimberly Ayala, Shelby Tavares, Tyler Hernandez, Deidra Dennis and Christian Legault. Brief writers were Gianfranco Villalba, Hannah McLaughlin and Isabella Gentilozzi.
Cooley advocates Christian Legault and John Johnson advanced through the preliminary rounds to the Sweet Sixteen, placing Cooley among the competition’s advancing teams before concluding their run against Michigan State University.
The August and September results continue a successful year for Cooley’s Moot Court Program. Earlier in 2026, a team of Tampa Bay campus students won the Robert Orseck Moot Court Competition, which brings together teams from Florida law schools during The Florida Bar Convention. Cooley students Isabel Zagazeta, Demitri Samarkos and Carson Yonker captured the championship, with Yonker also being named the competition’s Best Advocate.
Cooley Law School students (left-right) Kimberly Ayala, Dahlia Despradel, and John Johnson, and earned runner-up honors at the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition.
Cooley Law School students compete during the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition in Orlando, Florida. L to R: Kimberly Ayala, Prof. Elpiniki Roussos, Dahlia Despradel, and John Johnson.
Cooley Law School students compete during the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition in Orlando, Florida. L to R: Kimberly Ayala, John Johnson, and Dahlia Despradel.
Cooley Law School students compete during the National Puerto Rican Bar Association Moot Court Competition in Orlando, Florida. Kimberly Ayala, John Johnson, NPRBA President Anthony Suarez, and NPRBA Competition Chair Marie Masson.
Cooley Law School students competed in the E. Earle Zehmer National Moot Court Competition in August. Pictured from left are John Johnson, Kimberly Ayala, Shelby Tavares, Tyler Hernandez, Deidra Dennis and Christian Legault. Brief writers Gianfranco Villalba, Hannah McLaughlin and Isabella Gentilozzi are not pictured.