17th ANNUAL COLORADO HIGH SCHOOL MOCK TRIAL COMPETITION

SCORING PANEL GUIDELINES

It is strongly recommended that the scoring panel consist of a minimum of three panelists. The presiding judge may or may not score the trial round. As the authority in matters concerning court procedure, s/he may comment on or question the proceedings, the student attorneys, or the witnesses at any time during the trial WITH ONE EXCEPTION. We ask you not to interrupt closing arguments. As such, the management of the trial round should take precedence over keeping score. As a result, to the extent that volunteer resources allow relieving presiding judges of keeping score (in other words, you have enough volunteers to provide 3-person scoring panels without having to ask the judge to score) you should do so. Individual score sheets must be completed by each scoring panel member. Collaborative deliberation between or among panelists is neither necessary nor desired. See the guidelines for presiding judges and for scorers at the end of the case materials in Attachment 2.

PRESIDING JUDGE PRE-TRIAL PROCEDURES

At the beginning of the trial, the presiding judge will handle the following pretrial matters:

1. Ask each side if it is ready for trial.
2. Ask each side to provide the judge and panel with copies of its Team Roster without the school name and a completed Code of Conduct.
3. If video recorders are present, confirm that both teams have approved the taping of the round. (Coaches/gallery are not permitted to tape the trials without permission)
4. Ask if anyone connected with other teams are present in the courtroom (other than the teams competing in the trial round). If so, ask them to leave and report to the registration desk, where they can be informed of trial locations involving their teams.
5. Remind the teams that no recesses will be allowed with the exception of those for a health emergency, and especially not between the end of witness examination and the beginning of closing argument.
6. Ask the other scoring panelists if they recognize either team or any of the team members. If any panelist recognizes a team or a team member, the judge will notify the competition committee and arrangements will be made to replace the panelist.
7. Remind the teams and their coaches that any disputes arising out of this competition must be reported in accordance with these Rules of the Competition - specifically Rules 17, 18, 19, and 20.
8. Remind the teams that their compliance with time requirements will be considered in scoring individual performances.
9. Confirm that no coach or team member (other than a timer, if a timer is not provided by the competition committee) is seated in the jury box.
10. Swear in the witnesses:

"Do you promise that the testimony you are about to give will faithfully and truthfully conform to the facts, procedures, and rules of the mock trial competition?"

SCORING GUIDELINES

Scoring judges will score participants on a scale of 1-10, according to the presentation of their roles during the trial. Teams have options concerning attorney/witness role assignment, order of calling witnesses, selecting who presents opening and closing arguments, which are explained in the mock trial rules. Judges are not to pass judgment on how teams make assignments or organize their case presentation. You are scoring the student performance for each element of the trial round. You are NOT SCORING THE MERITS OF THE LEGAL CASE AND APPLICABLE LAW. RATHER, YOU ARE SCORING THE PERFORMANCE OF THE STUDENTS AS ATTORNEYS AND WITNESSES TO DETERMINE THE WINNING TEAM, PLAINTIFF OR DEFENDANT.

THE OPENING STATEMENT: The attorney should provide a clear and concise description of the case facts or evidence which will be presented in the case. The statement should be organized, articulate, poised and delivered with confidence.

DIRECT-EXAMINATION: It is not an argument. The attorney should use questions requiring straightforward answers. Questions should be properly phrased, non-leading, exhibiting an understanding of trial procedures and bringing out key information. Attorneys should be poised, prepared, and articulate and have confident delivery. Attorneys should appropriately make and respond to objections.

CROSS-EXAMINATION: The questions should bring out contradictions in testimony and weaken the opposing side's case. Cross-examinations include objections on direct. Leading questions are appropriate.

WITNESSES: The witness should present believable characterizations, convincing testimony, show preparation under direct and cross-examination with confidence and poise.

CLOSING ARGUMENT: The attorney should provide a clear and concise argument of the facts in evidence and how the facts integrate with the applicable law in support of their position. This argument should be organized and well reasoned.

OBJECTIONS: Objections are scored within the context of the examination (direct or cross). Objecting without merit should be cause for reduced scores. Objections should be evaluated based upon the relative strength they bring to the examination by the attorney.

Team members should be courteous, professional, observe general courtroom decorum, speak distinctly and clearly, and have general knowledge of the law and trial procedures. All team members shall be involved in the presentation of the case and meet time limits.

It is very important to read the fact situation and witness statements carefully. Given the mock trial format, students will refer to specific points/facts and make references to certain pages in the text; you need to be familiar with the pertinent details. After the team's presentation, the scoring judges will debrief the teams. Critiques and suggestions for improvements to the teams, including praise, are greatly appreciated. All judges are encouraged to make comments. Positive reinforcement and suggestions to both sides helps ensure a beneficial educational experience for everyone.

SCORE SHEET (.pdf--50KB)
Click on the link above to get the Adobe Acrobat file of the scoresheet. If you do not have a copy of the Acrobat Reader on your computer, you can download it for free at www.adobe.com.

RULES OF THE COLORADO MOCK TRIAL COMPETITION

The following procedures and rules of the Colorado Mock Trial Competition will govern conduct of competitions at local and state tournaments. It is advisable to check with your local tournament coordinator prior to local tournaments regarding any unique local rules/changes. As an example, the local tournament may or may not power match and may or may not include a championship round. Check with your local coordinator.

Local tournament coordinators have the liberty and the responsibility to conduct their tournaments as determined by their local bar association and by the needs of the local courts. The manner in which the tournaments are scheduled, teams are matched, teams are scored, teams advance, and winners are named is as determined by the local tournament coordinator.

Local tournament coordinators are encouraged to maximize media coverage of mock trial events. In doing so, the media may attend mock trial rounds to cover the event and take pictures, audio and/or videotape. Media representatives must be briefed to minimize disruptions to the trial round in process. Teams are encouraged to understand the value of media coverage and, to the extent practical, train to ignore their presence in order to maximize their trial round performance.

The Colorado Mock Trial Competition is governed by the Procedures of the Competition, Rules of the Competition, Rules of Procedure, and the Mock Trial Rules of Evidence herein. Any clarification of rules or case materials will be issued in writing to all registered teams as soon as practical prior to the scheduled competition (local or state championship tournament). The local or state tournament trial coordinator should distribute to each registered team any such clarification.

All teams are responsible for the conduct of persons associated with their teams throughout the mock trial event. Failure to observe appropriate conduct may subject the team to disqualification at the sole discretion of the local tournament or state coordinator or coordinating committees. Inappropriate behavior may include (but not be limited to): coaching (audible or visual) from the gallery, demonstrative reactions to rulings or results, disruptions from gallery members inside or outside the courtroom, etc.