Competing Students Gain Trial Law Knowledge

The novice competition, which began nine years ago, is open to all UNC undergraduates and first-year law students. This is the first year that teams from Duke, N.C. Central and N.C. State universities have been invited, said Michael O'Sullivan, president of the academy.

Of the 14 teams who competed, two were UNC undergraduate teams, one was from Duke law school, and 11 were composed of UNC School of Law students, O'Sullivan said.

He said each team was composed of four to eight students and had to prepare both a prosecution and a defense for the mock trial.

This year's case was a criminal trial in which the defendant was a fast-food employee charged with stealing a $20,000 bank deposit from his employer, O'Sullivan said.

In the final round, the Duke team acted as the prosecutors and a UNC team presented the defense, with members of the teams serving as plaintiff, defendant and witnesses as well as lawyers.

The jury for all four days of the competition featured members of UNC's National Trial Team, a competitive branch of the academy.

Adam Blessing, a second-year law student and member of the National Trial Team, said he sees improvements within the teams throughout the competition. "It's amazing the talent you see."

Vickie Alterman, a sophomore philosophy major, was on an undergraduate team that made it to the quarter-finals. "It's a good experience, and it's neat to meet people who are interested in the same things," she said.

Alterman, who plans to attend law school and competed in mock trials in high school, said she plans to compete again next year.

Robert Waters, a first-year law student on the second-place UNC team, was awarded the "best witness" award for the final round. He said the competition was a great learning tool.

"We've been practicing on and off for about two weeks now," Waters said. "It was a great deal of work. I had no real appreciation of how much prep time goes into even a mock trial."

O'Sullivan said the competition offers a number of benefits to those who are willing to commit the time. "It builds confidence," he said. "It allows you, as an undergrad or first-year law student, to play the roles of the people on TV. It allows you to feel out how interested you are."

Ashley Davis, a member of the second-place team, said competing against skilled teams, like the one from Duke, really improved her team's abilities.

After losing to the Duke team in the second round, Davis said her team restructured its case and was much better prepared to meet Duke again in the final round.

The 14-member jury originally was deadlocked 7-7. After a revote, the jury decided the Duke team had out-performed UNC but found the defendant not guilty.

"The jury is looking for consistency in theory and theme throughout the case," O'Sullivan said. Opening and closing statements should agree, and all evidence and testimony presented should work to prove these points, he said.

Davis said she felt her team was able to achieve as much as they did because they all worked together. "I think the real strength of our team was that every single person on the team worked on every aspect of the case."

Davis said she had a great time and learned a lot. "It really showed that competition can be fun and a real learning experience," she said.

"In a week I learned more about trial advocacy than I could reading a book or taking a class."

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