Ohio Mock Trial Competition
“The only exposure I had to the legal field was from television shows
such as Law & Order. Mock Trial allowed me to come face to face with
the career I have always known I wanted to pursue. For me, Mock Trial
was not just a competition in high school. Mock Trial was the most
important building block that solidified my passion to pursue law and
become a lawyer. Not only did Mock Trial introduce me to mentors and
legal professionals, but it also ignited a fire in me that still burns today." -- Tiana Bohanon, Cleveland State University Class of 2016
The CMBA was proud again in 2018 to host the first two stages of the Ohio Mock Trial Competition in Cuyahoga County for teams across Northeast Ohio. District trials were held on January 26, and Regional trials on February 16 for advancing teams. Between the District and Regional competitions hosted by the CMBA, over 500 students represented 16 local high schools divided into 46 teams. Click here for a video of the mock trial in partnership with the Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas.
Congratulations to Strongsville High School Team Thor for advancing through the semifinals of the State Tournament this year, and Orange High School Team Newton for making it to the quarterfinals!
Email Jessica Paine to learn more about volunteering in 2019. Each year volunteer judges and attorneys serve as competition judicial panelists. At this done-in-a-day volunteer opportunity, volunteers have the chance to observe the region's finest budding legal minds in an exciting afternoon of competition. Judicial panels score students based on their understanding of the case facts and applicable law, the roles of the attorney and witnesses at trial, and courtroom procedures and decorum. 2018 is the 35th anniversary of the Ohio Mock Trial program, and to mark this momentous occasion the case hypothetical tackles the most-requested topic yet: a murder trial, with a Constitutional twist!
The CMBA extends our sincere thanks to the judges and magistrates of the Court of Common Pleas, Cleveland Municipal Court, Cuyahoga County Eighth District Court of Appeals, Common Pleas Court, Probate Court, and Domestic Relations Court for allowing us to use their courtrooms for this special event each year, and to the Justice Center, Lakeside Courthouse, and Law Library staff for their gracious assistance. The Ohio Mock Trial program is conducted under the auspices of the
Ohio Center for Law Related Education (OCLRE), sponsored by the Supreme Court of Ohio, the Ohio State Bar Association, Attorney
General’s Office and ACLU Foundation of Ohio.
Want to know what it's like to volunteer? Click here for the January 2013 Bar Journal article featuring friends of the program sharing their experiences. For photos of participating teams and of the volunteer judicial panelists, please visit the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar’s Facebook page: @CleMetroBar
