Civil Mock Trials

Contents

  1. 1 What is the simulation: 'Civil Mock Trials'?
  2. 2 How do you use it?
  3. 3 Who is the audience?
  4. 4 What other resources will complement this?

From Street law Inc.
http://www.streetlaw.org//en/Page.mocktrials_civil.aspx 


This resource gathers together a list of mock trial resources:  documents that can serve as the mock trial materials for high school (and college) students.  The resources (which are 50-or-so page documents) are in-depth and provide everything from the stipulated facts and evidence, to claims, relief requests, witnesses statements and related case law. 

The list of possible mock trials includes a wide variety of cases, each of which helps students apply core legal concepts to different scenarios.  The mock trials included particular components that students would find both timely and eye opening, such as the transcript of text messages in the Billings v. Pearson case.

 

How do you use it?


The mock trial resources are best used as intended — in high school or college classrooms for students participating in mock trial teams.  They are targeted to an older audience that already has gathered and learned information on civil trials and how they work.  The content is not necessarily difficult, there is just a lot of information and some legal background is involved. 

Judges will likely want to use these mock trial resources in conjunction with a school that is intending to mount a mock trial.  A judge could work with a school to mount the trial in the courtroom, with the judge presiding.  Judges could use the materials to help assign students to different roles and oversee their application of the materials.

Caution:  
The description of each mock trial is only cursorily explained on the primary page that lists each of them, making it a bit time-consuming for a judge — or a student — to navigate through the webpage to select a particular mock trial case.

The actual information for each mock trial can be overwhelming at first glance for high school students. The inclusion of the related civil codes add to each mock trial case's complexity because the average student reader may not know how to apply these to the given case.  Judges could add particular value if they were to explain the case law to a mock trial team.


Who is the audience?

These mock trials are geared towards use in older high school and college classrooms.


What other resources will complement this?

  1. A Conversation on the Constitution: Jury Service — Videos and lesson plan from the Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics (M, H, A)
  2. Considering the Constitution — Document from Scholastic (P, M, H) 
  3. Court Shorts: Jury Service — Video from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (M, H, A)
  4. Criminal Mock Trials — Case study/mock trial from Street Law (H, A)
  5. Deciding by Group: You Are the Jury — Document from Scholastic (P, M, H)  
  6. Juror Selection — Document from Scholastic (M, H)
  7. Pathways to the Bench — Videos from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (H)
  8. Quiz #3: Civil Cases — Lesson Plan from the Federal Judicial Center (M, H, A)
  9. Quiz #4: Criminal Cases — Lesson Plan from the Federal Judicial Center (M, H, A)
  10. Texting While Driving — Case study/mock trial from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (H, A)
  11. Trial Court 'Go Fish' — Game from iCivics (P, M)

Additional Recommended Resources | Off-Site Links

  1. A Constitutional Timeline
    • Multi-aged audience timeline that highlights key dates in history of Constitution, with links to text, audio and video clips. From National Constitution Center's Constitution Day site. 
  2. Interactive Constitution
    • Multi-aged audience site that enables users to search Constitution by keyword or topic, with access to explanatory materials throughout. From National Constitution Center.   
  3. The Annenberg Guide to the United States Constitution
    • Multi-aged audience site that lists the text of each section of every article in the Constitution, and provides explanation of what the text means in plain language.  From the Leonore Annenberg Institute of Civics. 
  4. Understanding the Federal Courts
    • Multi-aged online textbook-type document that includes sections on Article III, the Federal Court system and the geographical boundaries of the Courts of Appeal and the District Courts, the code of conduct for judges, juror qualifications, exemptions and terms of service, as well as categories of bankruptcy cases.  From the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts.
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