{"id":3260,"date":"2026-07-16T00:29:58","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T00:29:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/?page_id=3260"},"modified":"2026-08-26T17:44:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T17:44:56","slug":"ames-brief-archive","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/ames-brief-archive\/","title":{"rendered":"Ames Brief Archive"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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<\/div>\n

The Ames Brief Archive<\/h1>\n
<\/div>\n

Briefs from past Ames competitions, collected as a resource for competitors and for HLS students interested in appellate advocacy. Each entry lists the questions presented, the topics at issue, and the facts of the case.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

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HLS Students Only<\/div>\n

The briefs in this archive are available to Harvard Law School students only. You must be signed in to your HLS Google account to view them.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Jump to  <\/span>\n 2026<\/a>\n 2025<\/a>\n 2024<\/a>\n 2023<\/a>\n 2022<\/a>\n 2021<\/a>\n 2020<\/a>\n 2019<\/a>\n 2018<\/a>\n 2017<\/a>\n 2016<\/a>\n 2015<\/a>\n 2014<\/a>\n 2013<\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n
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2026<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Semi-Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
United States v. July<\/div>\n
Criminal Procedure \u00b7 Venue \u00b7 Miranda<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether venue for a charge of international parental kidnapping lies in the Eastern District of Ames.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether statements made to a state social worker without Miranda warnings must be suppressed.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Appellant Brief<\/a>Appellee Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
United States v. Davis<\/div>\n
Fourth Amendment \u00b7 Sentencing<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether a person retains a reasonable expectation of privacy in a tent on public land.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether a prior conviction qualifies as a crime of violence for a sentencing enhancement under U.S.S.G. \u00a7 4B1.2(a).<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Appellant Brief<\/a>Appellee Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2025<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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State of Ames v. Welles<\/div>\n
Fifth Amendment \u00b7 Takings \u00b7 Sovereign Immunity<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the Fifth Amendment creates a self-executing cause of action to redress an alleged taking.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the Eleventh Amendment bars plaintiffs from seeking \u201cjust compensation\u201d directly under the Fifth Amendment from a State in federal court absent a waiver of sovereign immunity.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2024<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Semi-Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Jax v. Wildwood<\/div>\n
Civil Procedure \u00b7 Appellate Jurisdiction \u00b7 \u00a7 1983<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether a plaintiff may appeal the dismissal of one claim after voluntarily dismissing all remaining claims without prejudice.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether a 42 U.S.C. \u00a7 1983 malicious-prosecution claim must be dismissed where the officer had probable cause to arrest for a separate offense.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Appellant Brief<\/a>Appellee Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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United States v. Vance<\/div>\n
Fourth Amendment \u00b7 Sentencing Guidelines \u00b7 Deference<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether a suppression-hearing record must be reviewed in the light most favorable to the government, and whether the district court erred in denying the motion to suppress evidence from the protective sweep.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the district court erred in treating the United States Sentencing Commission’s commentary as controlling when applying a sentencing enhancement.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Appellant Brief<\/a>Appellee Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Welles v. Doe<\/div>\n
Second Amendment \u00b7 Immigration<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether a noncitizen unlawfully present in the United States but with substantial ties to the country is part of \u201cthe people\u201d with Second Amendment rights.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the government can disarm noncitizens unlawfully present in the United States but with substantial ties to the country, consistent with the history of the Second Amendment.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2023<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
OSHA v. Federici Contracting, LLC<\/div>\n
Administrative Law \u00b7 APA \u00b7 Article III<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether 5 U.S.C. \u00a7 706(2) of the Administrative Procedure Act requires courts to vacate agency rulemakings found to violate the Act.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether, if so, 5 U.S.C. \u00a7 706(2) violates Article III of the U.S. Constitution by requiring federal courts to exceed their judicial power.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2022<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Energon, U.S.A. v. Ames County Board of Commissioners<\/div>\n
Federal Common Law \u00b7 Climate Change \u00b7 Jurisdiction<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether federal common law exclusively governs claims seeking redress for injuries allegedly caused by the effect of interstate greenhouse gas emissions.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether a federal district court has jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. \u00a7 1331 over claims seeking redress for injuries allegedly caused by the effect of interstate greenhouse gas emissions even if they are pleaded under state law.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2021<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Artiss v. Westlake Pharmaceuticals, Inc.<\/div>\n
Civil Procedure \u00b7 Personal Jurisdiction<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether a court may exercise specific personal jurisdiction over a brand-name pharmaceutical manufacturer that promotes and sells a drug in the forum State when the plaintiff was injured by a generic version of the same drug\u2013which was required by law to copy the branded drug’s key features.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether Ames Stat. \u00a7 5101 comports with due process to the extent it conditions registration to do business in the State on consent to general personal jurisdiction in the State’s courts.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2020<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Tanner v. State of Ames<\/div>\n
First Amendment \u00b7 Fifth Amendment \u00b7 Self-Incrimination<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the Ames Nonconsensual Pornography Act, Ames Crim. Stat. 545, violates the First Amendment.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination allows a defendant to refuse to disclose the password to her computer and phone, when the government has a warrant to search those devices.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
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2019<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Department of the Interior v. Caldwell<\/div>\n
Equal Protection \u00b7 Tenth Amendment \u00b7 Indian Law<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. \u00a7 1901 et seq., and the final rule implementing the statute violate equal protection.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. \u00a7 1901 et seq., and the final rule implementing the statute violate the anti-commandeering component of the Tenth Amendment.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Briefs coming soon<\/span><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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2018<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Groves v. Gallant<\/div>\n
Second Amendment \u00b7 First Amendment \u00b7 Free Speech<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether Ames Rev. Stat. \u00a7 18-133(a) violates the Second Amendment as applied to Groves.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether Ames Rev. Stat. \u00a7 18-726(a) violates the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
2017<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Bloom v. United States<\/div>\n
Equal Protection \u00b7 Gender Discrimination \u00b7 Criminal Procedure<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the Court should overrule Rostker and hold that Bloom’s conviction must be vacated because the Selective Service registration requirement unconstitutionally discriminates on the basis of gender.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether Bloom is entitled to withdraw his felony guilty plea as a matter of right because the magistrate judge lacked statutory or constitutional authority to accept the plea.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
2016<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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United States v. Papaya Cellular<\/div>\n
Fourth Amendment \u00b7 Stored Communications Act \u00b7 Digital Privacy<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the court of appeals erred in concluding that it would cause an \u201cundue burden\u201d on Papaya Cellular, within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. \u00a7 2703(d), to require it to write software to override its encryption technology and disaggregate a particular subscriber’s historical cell site information to assist in an ongoing terrorism investigation.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the court of appeals erred in concluding that disclosure of the historical cell site information would violate the Fourth Amendment.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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\n
2015<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Abrams v. Vita, Inc.<\/div>\n
Americans with Disabilities Act \u00b7 Employment Discrimination \u00b7 Reasonable Accommodation<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether the Americans with Disabilities Act requires an employer to reassign an individual with a disability who can no longer perform the essential functions of his current job to a vacant equivalent position for which he is qualified, even though the individual would not have obtained that position under the employer’s policy of hiring the most qualified candidate.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether the Americans with Disabilities Act protects an individual with a disability who uses marijuana for medical purposes under the supervision of a physician and in accordance with state law when the individual’s employer takes adverse employment action on the basis of such use.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
2014<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Duke v. United States<\/div>\n
Sixth Amendment \u00b7 Ineffective Assistance of Counsel \u00b7 Sentencing<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether counsel renders ineffective assistance in violation of the Sixth Amendment by failing to file a notice of appeal at a defendant’s request when the defendant has waived his right to appeal in a plea agreement.<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether a prisoner may challenge his sentence under 28 U.S.C. \u00a7 2255 when an intervening change in law demonstrates that the prisoner was erroneously sentenced as a career offender.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
2013<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
Final Round<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
Jimenez v. Holder<\/div>\n
Immigration Law \u00b7 Asylum \u00b7 Right to Counsel<\/div>\n
Questions Presented<\/div>
1.<\/div>
Whether an applicant for asylum claiming fear of persecution on account of his or her membership in a \u201cparticular social group\u201d must show that the group has \u201csocial visibility.\u201d<\/div><\/div>
2.<\/div>
Whether an applicant for asylum denied the right to the counsel of his or her choosing in immigration proceedings must show that the denial resulted in actual prejudice in order to obtain relief.<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n
Facts & Context \u2192<\/a><\/div>\n
Petitioner Brief<\/a>Respondent Brief<\/a>Reply Brief<\/a><\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Additional briefs will be added as they become available. Access is limited to current HLS students signed in to their HLS Google accounts.<\/p>\n

Questions about the archive?
Email the Ames Committee at amesHLS@gmail.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The Ames Brief Archive Briefs from past Ames competitions, collected as a resource for competitors and for HLS students interested […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2580,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"disabled","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"class_list":["post-3260","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P5BJdO-QA","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3260","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2580"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3260"}],"version-history":[{"count":47,"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3260\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3577,"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3260\/revisions\/3577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/orgs.law.harvard.edu\/bsa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3260"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}