Each spring the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark  in partnership with the Animal Legal Defense Fund, and the GW Law SALDF present the Legislative Drafting and Lobbying Competition at The George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC.  This competition is sponsored by The Humane Society of the United States.

The competition is a fun and educational opportunity for students interested in influencing local, state, and federal legislation. Competitors drafted and lobbied federal legislation based on a current animal law issue.  This year’s problem required the students to draft an amendment to include poultry under the coverage of the federal Humane Methods of Slaughter Act.  In three preliminary rounds, competitors lobbied their proposed bill to three different members of Congress, based on legislator profiles. 

The legislators, who scored competitors on: presentation, organization and preparation, credibility and persuasive ability, ability to respond to questioning, and clarity in stating their goal for the meeting (the “ask”), were lobbyists from the Government Affairs Division of The Humane Society of the United States.  The top three competitors then moved on the final round – also judged by a professional lobbyist.