Cleveland- For the second year in a row, Cleveland-Marshall tax students have proved they are among the nation's best. The student team of Ben Heidinger and Tim Murphy was selected as one of six semi-finalist teams in the American Bar Association Law Student Tax Challenge, sponsored by the Young Lawyers Division of the Bar Association's Tax Section.

The student teams were provided a problem in September and required to submit a solution to the client by November. Based on the written work,six teams from the JD division and four teams from the Masters division were selected as semi-finalists.

"We are extremely proud of Ben and Tim's exceptional work," said C-M Dean Craig M. Boise. "Taken together with the performance of last year's team, their accomplishment reflects both the intellectual strength of our students and the exceptional legal training they receive at Cleveland-Marshall."

The semi-finalists receive an all-expenses-paid trip to San Diego for the Tax Section's 2012 Midyear Meeting in February, when they will defend their submissions orally before a panel of some of the country's top tax lawyers and federal judges. First and second place winners will be selected among the teams.

Heidinger and Murphy were coached by C-M Law Professor John Plecnik. Last year, the C-M Law team of Caryn Gross and Michael Tangry, coached by Professor Deborah Geier, brought home the second place national prize in the JD division.