Students make cases for Judges Cup

YorkRegion.com
February 25, 2014
By Chris Traber

Attorney Shane Gould, a member of an exalted defence team in a sensational murder trial at the Newmarket courthouse, studies his client’s case file.

In moments, the lawyer and his colleagues will face off against an equally venerable team of Crown attorneys before Justice Cindy Johnston.

The future of the accused, Wally Broque, a mild-mannered teacher, depends on the judicial skills of the robed men and women of the court.

As the proceedings are called to order, Shane’s proud mom, Janet, offers her son a mint, takes his coat and follows other beaming parents in the courtroom.

The 17-year-old Grade 12 student is one of some 200 youths representing 20 public and Catholic board and private schools in the 11th annual 2014 York Region Secondary School Mock Trial Competition that began Monday.

More unreal than surreal, the basement lobby at York Region’s seat of justice is a mass of students, teacher coaches, volunteer crown counsels, parents, friends and dispensers of legal robes.

The three-day tournament for the Judges Cup is a lavish simulation.

The student lawyers, witnesses and accused are role playing. The  Justices, provincial prosecutors, court clerks, courtrooms and stoic special constables are all very authentic and, for the most part, volunteer their time and expertise.

For Shane, a member of the Tanenbaum Community Hebrew Academy team, the tournament involving legal wrangling and wits is serious business.

Students, normally civics or law scholars, study both defence and prosecution roles since a flip of a coin determines what side of the bench they’ll occupy.

To begin the trial, Shane’s team has decided the best strategy is to poke holes in the main case. “We’ll also listen carefully to what is being said and to what is not being said,” Shane noted.

Ms Gould said her son, who competed in 2013, is aspiring to be a bona fide lawyer in the future.

“He did really well last year,” she enthused. “He got good comments. I think the mock trials are amazing. The learning experience is priceless.”

Competition organizing committee member Lori Thompson, an assistant Crown attorney, said each team consists of seven to nine students. The event will have teams arguing, as defence or prosecutors, in the pseudo murder trial of fictional David Benning with equally mythical Wally Broque as the accused.

Students are provided with a detailed case outline well in advance. The document contains police reports, witness statements, crime scene schematics and the Canada Criminal Code as applicable to murder and manslaughter.

In the opening round of the mooting, the Tanenbaum team was pitted against a well versed squad from Steven Lewis Secondary School.

Justice Johnston heard opening statements from both sides, as the accused, portrayed by Tanenbaum student Max Levy, sat forlornly in the glass panelled prisoner’s dock.

And thus, the spirited legal sparring began. Unlike a genuine trial, the judge offers a critique of the student performers and entertains questions following the session.

The competition gives young people an opportunity to get in touch with a potential career, Ms Thompson said. Many have expressed an interest in law or law enforcement career.

“It’s an amazing event,” she said of the competition, which resumes Wednesday and concludes next Monday. “This is the 11th year and it’s grown significantly. The Judges Cup is our version of the Stanley Cup.”

The regional competition is a ramp up to the annual Ontario Bar Association’s Provincial Mock Trial competition this summer, Ms Thompson said. In the past, many York Region students have competed and see the regional mock trials as en entree to the provincials.

The regional competition is a unique opportunity for youth weighing a career in law or law enforcement, the Honourable Mr. Justice Peter Tetley, an organizing committee member for all 11 years, said.

The mock trials give students the chance to prosecute and defend simulated criminal cases in a real courtroom, Mr. Tetley said. A lawyer will coach each team throughout the competition. Teams are evaluated on trial process and procedure, development and presentation of appropriate legal arguments and statements, compelling oral arguments and advocacy. Students will also be judged on witness performance, courtroom etiquette and decorum.

The Judges Cup will be awarded March 3.