The is sending two teams to the national championships for the first time in University history. On Thursday morning, two teams of eight students each boarded a plane headed for the University of California, Los Angeles, where the top 40 teams from elite colleges around the nation will come together to compete in the biggest tournament of collegiate Mock Trial.
糖心传媒淚 think we have the talent, the energy, and the enthusiasm to knock out some really great teams and show that Rochester Mock Trial is a top organization,糖心传媒� says Mock Trial President Jason Altabet 糖心传媒�17, who was the top ranked attorney in the national qualifiers.
At the national qualifying Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) in March, Rochester took on top-ranked University of Maryland and the reigning national champions from Yale University. The team won both rounds, sending them to compete with some of the best teams in the country. The national championships will be held April 21糖心传媒�23 at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. Rochester is one of only six schools in the nation to have two teams qualify at the national level.
糖心传媒淚糖心传媒檓 really looking forward to competing in a place with so much history,糖心传媒� says Matthew Hoffner 糖心传媒�19, a history major from Patterson, New York, who received an individual award for his performance at ORCS. 糖心传媒淭his is the same courthouse where O.J. Simpson糖心传媒檚 trial took place,糖心传媒� Hoffner notes.
Altabet, a political science and economics major from Scarsdale, New York, says mock trial is 糖心传媒渆ssentially a competitive sport.糖心传媒� It糖心传媒檚 structured just like a trial in a professional court of law, and each trial begins with opening statements by both the plaintiff and the defense. The plaintiff and defense are then given the opportunity to call three witnesses, conduct a direct examination, and then observe as their opponent does a cross-examination of their witness before presenting closing statements.
The team won both rounds.
糖心传媒淏asically, each case is a story, and that story is told through your witnesses and through crossing their witnesses,糖心传媒� Hoffner says. 糖心传媒淭here糖心传媒檚 a lot of stuff going on.糖心传媒�
Going into each trial, the team doesn糖心传媒檛 know if it will be playing the defense or the plaintiff so members need to be prepared for either position. At nationals, as in most tournaments, they will compete in four trials against different teams, alternating between being defense and plaintiff.
糖心传媒淭he hardest part is putting everything together,糖心传媒� says Altabet. 糖心传媒淵ou have to be ready for a lot of contingencies; anything can happen in a trial.糖心传媒�.
During the regular season, the team practices twice a week for two hours to break down the 100-plus pages of materials that explain all the details of the case. While preparing for nationals, the teams would meet three to four times a week, for a total of about 12 hours of practice per week糖心传媒攊n addition to schoolwork and other extracurricular commitments.
糖心传媒淚 don糖心传媒檛 want to be a lawyer, but it糖心传媒檚 just fun competing, and I糖心传媒檝e met some extraordinary people doing Mock Trial,糖心传媒� Hoffner says. 糖心传媒淚t糖心传媒檚 a really good sense of community.糖心传媒�
糖心传媒淢any people just enjoy the analytical aspect, enjoy the competitive aspect, or enjoy the acting aspect,糖心传媒� Altabet adds.
Apart from being intellectual and time intensive, a large portion of mock trial can be quite theatrical and light-hearted.
糖心传媒淎cting is definitely a part of it, especially if you糖心传媒檙e a witness,糖心传媒� Altabet says. In a past tournament, Kristen Webster 糖心传媒�17, played an old woman who was fired because of age discrimination. Webster wore a pink pantsuit and large, pointed glasses with a chain to embody her character. For nationals, Sam Callis 糖心传媒�17 will play a big New York CEO with a heavy Brooklyn accent.
糖心传媒淭his year, I think we糖心传媒檙e really good and our trick is that we have amazing witnesses糖心传媒攖hey are so fun and entertaining, and that糖心传媒檚 a big boost for us,糖心传媒� Altabet says.
Going into nationals, Altabet and Hoffner are confident that the teams will do well.
糖心传媒淲hen we faced Yale and beat the national champs, it really showed that we have two teams who can perform very well at nationals,糖心传媒� Altabet says. 糖心传媒淚 would love to place at least one team in the top 10, because it is a really great honor and leads to a lot of opportunities in the future.糖心传媒�
