After about half a year of preparation, Green Hope’s mock trial team traveled to Wilmington for its regional competition. Nervous but hopeful, they faced two different teams in two different rounds and waited to hear whether they would be going to the finals. As the teams were announced, they glanced at one another, wondering if their hard work would pay off. It did, so much so that Green Hope went on to win the finals and secure a spot at mock trial states held at Campbell University on March 13 and 14.
Mock trial is a club, or rather a team, at Green Hope where students try out at the beginning of the year and receive case materials from The North Carolina Mock Trial Program. These cases are fictional, but are based on real cases and precedents. Green Hope senior Diya Ramakrishnan (‘26) is the president of the club. She explained a mock trial as “the best representation of the legal field, or one of the best representations of the legal field you can get at a high school level.”
Each year, the type of case rotates between a civil and a criminal case. This year, the case was criminal. Teams are given a fact packet with pages of witness testimony, exhibits, case law and other evidence to support their arguments. Despite being given this packet, the process is often complex. Club vice president Aarav Pruthi (‘28) shares, “You have to interpret a case and use the law and legal theories to win the case. You have to prepare both a defense and a prosecution.” Using the packet given, students must go a step beyond simply comprehending the information. They have to make judgments, add nuance and understand all complexities.
This year, the case was a criminal case. The defense was attempting to prove the innocence of a pain doctor who had a patient die under his care, while the prosecution was trying to prove him guilty. The burden of proof made the case difficult for the prosecution, as they would have to prove the doctor guilty of multiple charges, and if the jury thought that the doctor was even the slightest bit innocent, then the doctor would be found not guilty.
After receiving the case materials, the team assigns roles to each member. There are two types of roles: attorneys and witnesses. Attorneys prepare questions for the witnesses to answer and organize the case in a way that creates a clear narrative. The witnesses are the heart of the case; these team members act as fake people involved in the case. Depending on the creativity of the person playing their role, being a witness could turn into a full-on acting job. Typically, there are three witness roles for each side: a lead witness or the person closest to the case, a minor witness and an expert witness making judgments based on years of experience.
Preparation takes months. Witness statements must be fully memorized, attorneys must write opening and closing statements, and each side of the case must sound like a coherent and complete narrative. During the process, the team truly gets to know each other. Pruthi described how he felt the team evolved over the preparation process, saying, “I am most proud of how well we were able to cooperate. We were able to get our stuff done and still develop a good bond.” He also noted that he was excited to see how this bond grew and how the mock trial legacy will continue.
President Ramakrishnan has been a member for all four years of high school. She joined because of the influence of a friend her freshman year, attending meetings before eventually trying out for the club. Ramakrishnan led the team to first place in Wilmington, sharing that it went really well for the team. “It was a lot of fun competing. I think it was a really positive experience for the team as a whole. We ended up making the finals and did win the region. I believe 12 teams were competing in the regional, so we came in first of 12, which is really exciting,” she shared.
The team’s win at regionals earned them a ticket to state, which is a first-time experience for many team members, including Ramakrishnan. “I’m just excited to see other people’s cases,” she shared. “The level at states is just a step above, and the really fun thing with mock trial is that there are always angles and things that you haven’t thought of, so I’m really excited to see the different ways different teams across the state approach the case and the different angles they take and the different case theories and objections and things like that they have.” Additionally, she is excited for the team bonding opportunities that come with competing at higher levels. “I am really proud of the team we built. It feels like a community to me, so I’m excited for us to grow closer over the next month while we’re preparing for states,” she explained.
Beyond the awards that the team shares, some individuals also stood out. In the competition, there are two types of awards: the star witness and star lawyer awards given by the other team at the end of each round, and the outstanding witness and lawyer awards given by the judges to only one person per round. Freshman Bruce Cheng (‘29) received all-star witness awards and outstanding witness awards for his performance as Dr. Alex Haight. Additionally, Ramakrishnan won two outstanding lawyer awards and one star lawyer award for her performance as a lawyer in both the defense and prosecution sides of the case.
Next year, the team aims to maintain its success while expanding as well. Each of the board members gave some advice for aspiring team members based on their experience. Based on her experience, Ramakrishnan would recommend that people “go for it.” She said, “I’m no longer interested in the legal field, but the skills I’ve gotten from mock trials have carried me forward through so many things.” In terms of what the team is looking for in new members, Ramakrishnan stated, “The biggest thing that we look for is confidence and the ability to speak and think on your feet.”
Pruthi seconded this advice, noting, “One of the things we’re looking for is good public speaking, but another thing is your ability to work well with other people and see how interested you are in forming a bond.” For those interested in exploring the legal field in a new way, mock trial is a great opportunity to learn, grow and meet new people while understanding how to think in a new way.
