UNH Franklin Pierce Students Shine in Texas Young Lawyers Association National Trial Competition

UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law proudly congratulates Patricia Shea and Patrick Yehle for their advancement to the semi-finals in the recent Texas Young Lawyers Association’s (TYLA) National Trial Competition in Massachusetts.

The National Trial Competition (NTC) was established in 1975 to encourage and strengthen students’ advocacy skills through quality competition and valuable interaction with members of the bench and bar. The program is co-sponsored by the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) and is designed to expose law students to the nature of trial practice and to serve as a supplement to their education. It is the Texas Young Lawyers Association’s (TYLA) intent to provide a meaningful contribution to the development of future trial lawyers.

TYLA administers the competition, which attracts teams from more than 140 law schools and involves more than 1,000 law students each year. This year the mock trial was in Woburn, Massachusetts, and was hosted by New England Law and Boston College Law School at the Middlesex Superior Courthouse.

Shea and Yehle were one of two teams from UNH Franklin Pierce. The other team was Charlie Shaw and Kate Miller. All are currently 3L students working towards a residential J.D. at UNH Franklin Pierce, through which they’ve taken Trial Advocacy and now Advanced Trial Advocacy. Since receiving the problem in December, both teams worked extremely hard honing their trial advocacy skills in preparation for the competition.

Following graduation in May, 2025, Shea will be starting at the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office on Long Island, New York. Yehle will be starting a position through the United States Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps. Miller aims to pursue a post-graduate position with a focus on Family Law. Lastly, Shaw will be starting a position through the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice's Fellowship program.

This is the second time, in as many years, that one of two teams from UNH Franklin Pierce advanced to the semi-finals of the NTC. While this 3-day competition can be particularly grueling, Shea and Yehle rose to the occasion, got past the obstacles, and thrived in the regional competition in Massachusetts.

They will make us all proud in their future careers and we are lucky to have them as students at UNH Franklin Pierce.