Students participate in Mock Trial Competition on Friday, January 10, 2014

For the 13th consecutive year, Grade 12 students will compete in the annual Mock Trial Competition at the Sudbury Courthouse on Friday, January 10, 2014. The student lawyers will prosecute and defend an accused charged with first-degree murder.

The Crown team will try to prove that the accused pushed his acquaintance over the balcony of the high-rise apartment. The defence team will argue that during an argument with the accused, the victim rushed at the accused, lost his balance, and fell through the balcony railing.  Other students will play the characters of a police officer and witnesses to the event.

Members of the Crown team will try to convince a judge, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused had the mental intent to commit murder and pushed the victim off the balcony.  Members of the defence team will focus their questions and argument on the presumption of innocence and what they will say is the lack of proof of the intent to commit murder.

The fact scenario was designed by the Ontario Bar Association and will be used by schools all across the province during local and regional Mock Trial competitions.

Eight schools from Rainbow District School Board and the Sudbury Catholic District School Board will participate in the 2014 competition: Confederation Secondary School, Espanola High School, Lasalle Secondary School, Lockerby Composite School, Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School, Sudbury Secondary School, St. Benedict’s Secondary School and St. Charles College. Lawyers from the Sudbury and District Law Association have volunteered to coach the teams at each of the schools.

Teams will be vying for the coveted Hennessy Cup, named after Madame Justice Patricia C. Hennessy, Mock Trial Project Leader since its inception 13 years ago. A number of additional awards will be presented – Best Advocate Defence, Best Advocate Crown, Best Witness and the Civility Award for courtroom decorum.

Rainbow District School Board Chair, Doreen Dewar, thanks the volunteer coaches from the Sudbury and District Law Association and the Sudbury Crown Attorney’s Office who, year after year, provide hundreds of hours of time to this project.  “Through the Mock Trial Competition, local lawyers make an invaluable contribution to student learning by bringing the classroom into the courtroom,” she says. “Many students have been inspired to pursue studies in the justice sector after secondary school.” She adds: “We commend the legal community for being exceptional role models for community service and student success.”

The Mock Trial Competition is well established within the Grade 12 Law curriculum. In addition to meeting curriculum expectations, mock trials develop other skills in students, including public speaking, teamwork, presentation, preparation and critical thinking skills.

“Open courts and open justice are necessary for citizens to have confidence in the administration of justice.  Most people will not go to courts to watch trials. They are more likely to read about them in newspapers or other media,” says Justice Hennessy. “As these students prepare to prosecute or defend a serious charge, they can appreciate the importance of the fundamental principles of proof beyond reasonable doubt and the presumption of innocence as the foundation of the society governed by the rule of law.”

She adds: “This experience increases the students’ understanding of the legal process and allows them to follow media reports of local or national legal matters with a critical eye. It is our hope that these students will be engaged citizens, whose experience of the trial process will give them an understanding of important justice issues in the life of the community.  We also know that this experience creates confident advocates, whether as students, citizens or professionals.”

The Mock Trial Competition will begin at 8:30 am in Courtroom A, with an opening address by area judges. (Observers must arrive on time in order to gain entry for this portion of the proceedings.) Trials will continue throughout the day and culminate with the championship trial at 2 pm. The Awards Ceremony will begin at 3:30 pm. The public is welcome to attend. Photographs will be permitted throughout the proceedings.

Local winners will go on to the Northeastern Mock Trial Competition to be held in early March. Regional winners will compete in the province-wide finals in Toronto in the spring.

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Media Contact:

Tiffany Roberts, Curriculum Co-ordinator,

Rainbow District School Board, 705-523-3308, ext. 8209.