On April 8, 2019, CUA Law students experienced a simulated-mediation exercise during the Lawyering Skills Program (LSP) appellate arguments entitled "United States of America ex rel. Barrier v. Twin Oaks Hospital, Inc."

LSP students Hunter Daley, Molly Berg, Svantje Swider, and Luke Rockwell stepped into character, assuming the roles of Plaintiff/Relator, Department of Justice Counsel, and Chairman of the Board's Private Motivations.

CUA Law Professor A.G. Harmon drafted the script, which raised thought-provoking legal issues, while at the same time examining the role that competent professional mediators can play in settling disputes before they reach a judge. Ben Jacewicz, who is an attorney and professional mediator in Fairfax County, Va., volunteered his time for the seventh year in a row.

The students discussed the legal action from many angles in class, but the capstone live simulation mediation exercise, acted out with impressive skills by the four students, brought the issues to a fitting close.

This mediation is the culmination of the semester-long first-year appellate advocacy problem. On April 5, one hundred and fifteen first-year students argued before sixty alumni and friends of The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, who volunteered to provide oral and written critiques of their advocacy.