Fifth Annual FBA Kickball Game: Worth the Wait
It was worth the wait. After a years-long delay, Team FBA-NOVA re-took the field, invigorated by rest and determined to re-stake its claim to kickball glory over Team Courthouse. FBA-NOVA struck first, turning fortuitous kicks and aggressive baserunning into a 2-0 lead. Undeterred, Judge Nachmanoff’s Courthouse squad—built bespoke from a cadre of fresh law clerks, burly deputy U.S. Marshals, and menacing Courthouse staff—counterpunched.
By the end of the first few innings, the fortunes had flipped. The score was settled at 5-2 in favor of Team Courthouse (as correctly maintained by scorekeeper Chip Molster upon wrongful protest by Team FBA-NOVA). The Honorable Referee Alston, by this point, had made clear his intention to call a tight and curated game; he devised a “no bunt” rule sua sponte and thereafter enforced it in a great show of judicial activism.
The game then hung in the balance for several innings, with each team matching one another run-for-run. Finally, the dual combo of Judges Anderson and Giles-led FBA-NOVA squad executed a late-inning comeback. No doubt, their success owed to the assistance of Co-Captain Kamens, who had finally re-learned the rules and was deploying an innovative strategy of encouraging his players to “kick it hard and run fast.” The runs kept accumulating, and the Deputy U.S. Marshals, who had earlier anchored the defense, could not withstand the barrage. Team Courthouse yielded, and the game ended with FBA-NOVA on top by a run. The return to glory was hard-pressed but seemingly inevitable.
Many thanks to the sponsors who made this event possible: Baker Botts LLP, Binnall Law Group PLLC, Blankingship & Keith P.C., Charlson Bredehoft Cohen Brown & Nadelhaft, P.C., Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP, Greenberg Traurig LLP, Fish & Richardson P.C., Hirschler Fleischer P.C., Hogan Lovells US LLP, Holland & Knight LLP, McGuireWoods LLP, Molster Law, Podolsky Law, Troutman Pepper LLP, Vinson & Elkins LLP, Webster Book LLP, and Wiley Rein LLP.
Special thanks to the Young Lawyers Committee, led by Dan Wallmuth (Vinson & Elkins) and Alexander Blanchard (U.S. Attorney’s Office), and Gul Gharbieh for organizing a great event.
By YLC Member Chris Conrad
