Mudit Buch ’23
Pronouns: he/him/his
Mudit is a 3L, who proudly hails from Long Beach Memorial Hospital. After dazzling the 9th largest city in California (Bakersfield) with his public speaking skills, Big City Buch became the zottiest #zot at UC Irvine. After bouncing around jobs and realizing he doesn’t have a Doctor’s touch, he decided to #GoCrimson. At HLS, he is also your West Coast Club Sponsorship Member, a Harvard Mediation Program mediator, and a PLAP-er. Mudit spent his 1L summer at the DOJ Antitrust Division and his 2L summer with Gibson Dunn in LA. You will never catch Mudit without Flamin’ Hot Cheetos (or Funyuns) and a Peppermint Frap.
Harsha Sridhar ’23
Pronouns: he/him/his
Shao-Jia Chang ’23
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Shao is a 3L from the greatest state of California. After growing up amongst cattle and a few other fellow humans, she studied Legal Studies and Psychology at UC Berkeley (#gobearsforever). She served for 3 years as a congressional aide to Congressman Mike Thompson both in D.C. and California, specifically as the go-to lunch order person. Having never mocked before, Shao joined HLS Mock Trial Association because the people are awesome. Now, she can confidently P when she takes Trial Advocacy Workshop. Shao is obsessed with her dog, French fries, Blue Bottle, yoga, composting, and all things organic.
Sarah Ghivizzani ’23
Sarah is a 3L from Clermont, FL. She studied Economics and Political Science at the University of Florida. Before law school, Sarah worked as a ski instructor in Breckenridge, Colorado. She spent her 1L summer at the Office of the Colorado State Public Defender and her 2L summer at Proskauer Rose in Washington, D.C. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, skiing, reading, and going for runs around Cambridge. She does not enjoy Cambridge winters.
Mario Fiandeiro ’23
Mario Fiandeiro is a 3L from San Jose, CA. He graduated from Northeastern University in 2020 where he competed in the American Parliamentary Debate Association. He spent his 1L summer at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and his 2L summer at Jones Day. Outside of Mock Trial, he is the Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy and a member of the Catholic Law Students Association.
Gayane Matevosyan ’23
Gayane is a 3L born in Armenia and raised in Maryland. She received a B.S. in Economics and a B.S. in Finance from the University of Maryland, where she competed on the mock trial team and worked as a resident assistant. She spent her 1L summer at the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center and her 2L summer at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. When she’s not talking about Armenia, Gayane loves rock climbing, playing guitar, and purchasing an unnecessary amount of candles.
Matthew Besman ’23
Vinay Basti ’23
Matthew Besman ’23
Justin Gillette ’23
Laura Bach ’22
Laura is an aspiring real lawyer and current fake lawyer on Harvard Law School’s mock trial team. In addition to being a part of HLS’s mock trial team, she is also a member of the Texas Club, Women’s Law Association, and Journal of Law and Gender. Before coming to law school, she served in the Peace Corps in Uganda for 27 months where she taught literacy skills to elementary-age students. Laura graduated from Cornell University in 2016 with a B.S. in Industrial and Labor Relations and a minor in Business. While at Cornell, she was president of the Cornell University Mock Trial Association, where she won numerous individual awards, including two All-American awards in her sophomore year. When she’s not law-ing, Laura enjoys practicing Bikram yoga, playing piano, and complaining about the ending to Game of Thrones.
Josie Contreras ’22
Josie is from Los Angeles, California. Before law school, he majored in Political Science at Cal Poly Pomona where he was part of the mock trial team. After graduating he went on to coach their team leading to win awards nationally. At HLS, Josie is part of La Alianza and First Class. During his 1L summer, he worked at the Federal Defenders Office for the Central District of California. In his free time, Josie enjoys being a gym bro, playing board games, and eating cereal for dinner.
Jonathan Kuang ’22
Jonathan is from San Diego, California. He really enjoys mock trial. Legend has it that his first words were “The bar for relevance is low, Your Honor.” He graduated from UCLA in 2018 and spent his 1L summer as a summer associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell. Jonathan split his 2L summer at Cravath, Swaine & Moore and Irell & Manella.
Robert Santamarina ’22
Robert is from Overland Park, Kansas. Before coming to HLS, he majored in Political Science at the University of Kansas, where he competed for four years on the mock trial team. During his 1L summer, he worked as an intern for Judge Robert E. Bacharach on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He loves all things related to litigation, but when he’s not reading opinions, you can find him playing soccer or (if he’s lucky) relaxing on a beach somewhere.
Gabrielle (Gabe) Crofford ’23
Gabe is a 2L from the Washington, DC area. She graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2014 and finished her Master’s in International Relations at American University in 2018. She’s also an AmeriCorps alum who lived in Helena, Montana for three years working at their Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection. An aspiring future litigator, she spent her first summer at Restoring Justice, a nonprofit in Texas that provides holistic criminal defense to indigent members of the Houston community. Mock trial was a great way for her to feel like a “real lawyer” during 1L, and she is thrilled to serve the team this year as IVP! At HLS, she also serves on boards for the Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review, Lambda, and Student Government, and is active in the Women’s Law Association and Justice Initiative. Her main concern this year is finding more friends who will let her play with their dogs!
Tiffany Li ’21
Tiffany is a Cleveland, Ohio native. Before law school, she was the president of Georgetown’s undergraduate mock trial team, and later a consultant at McKinsey & Company. At HLS, Tiffany was a member of the Board of Student Advisers and the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association. During her 1L summer, she worked at the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, Georgia. Outside of school, Tiffany spends her time watching Mike Schur comedies, using Excel spreadsheets to plan vacations, and staring at pictures of her puppy. She is now an associate at Alston & Bird.
Nick Beachy ’21
Nick is a litigator from Plain City, Ohio. His love of public speaking comes in part from his background in music and theater. He has always loved performing and the feeling of connecting with an audience, whether as a pianist or as the director of an a cappella vocal group in college. Now, he hopes to use his voice in the courtroom to advocate for clients and tell their stories. Nick is currently an associate at Gibbs & Brunn LLP.
Anissa Badea ’21
A proud So Cal native, Anissa grew up in Irvine, California and graduated from UC San Diego. Prior to law school, Anissa was a fellow at the California State Senate. Aside from continuously rewatching 30 Rock, Anissa spent her time at HLS involved in VIS Moot Court, the Street Justice Coalition, and the Harvard Law Entrepreneurship Project. For her 1L summer, Anissa interned at the Queens County District Attorney’s Office Domestic Violence Bureau. She is now an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore.
Parker Davis ’20
Parker was a JD/MBA student at Harvard Law School and Harvard Business School. Before beginning graduate school, she studied Government and Global Health and Health Policy at Harvard College and worked at The Blackstone Group. After her 1L year, Parker was a Summer Associate at Sullivan & Cromwell, and, after her first year of business school, she was an Investment Banking Summer Associate at Goldman Sachs.
Makenzi Herbst ’21
Makenzi Herbst is from Skaneateles, New York. Before law school, she majored in Environmental Engineering and played tennis at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Makenzi also loves ice cream, working out, and all things Upstate New York.