CU Law School Hosts Annual Mock Trial

Roberta Quinlan and Brian Kane’s attorneys showed off their legal prowess with every direct- and cross-examination Thursday night during Columbia Law School’s annual Jerome Michael Mock Jury Trial.

This year’s mock trial finals, which were attended by about 20 Belleville High School students from New Jersey and presided over by Judge Alvin Hellerstein, involved an alleged case of a breach of contract.

The student jurors who decided the case, many of whom are interested in careers in law, were brought in by the high school’s Law-Related Education program and Columbia Law School’s Moot Court Program.

Munching on pizza and chatting among themselves, the high school students quieted when Robert Glunt and Nina Yadava, counsels for the defense, and Chris Hogan and Andrew Perito, the plaintiff’s lawyers, began pretrial motions. Glunt, Yadava, Hogan, and Perito­, all law students, were the four finalists of the mock trial competition, in which 16 mock lawyers initially entered.

Throughout the trial, Judge Hellerstein often paused to explain context and judicial proceedings throughout the trial both to the high school jurors and mock attorneys. “It’s never wise to say anything more after you win,” advised Hellerstein when a lawyer for the plaintiff attempted to explain his reasons for including testimony after Hellerstein had already allowed it. “The judge might change his mind.”

An alumnus of the law school, Hellerstein was familiar with the mock trial process—in fact, he won the mock trial competition in 1956. From that competition on, Hellerstein continued to work in law, and currently serves on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and has been involved in cases related to Sept. 11 and the Abu Ghraib prison scandal.

This year’s competition revolved around mock litigation over an alleged breach of contract involving fake characters. Quinlan, a business broker, claimed she had entered into a contract with mock character Kane that stipulated that she receive a commission for helping him sell his company—he then allegedly reneged and refused to pay her. Kane, on the other hand, claimed he never entered into such a contract.

After splitting up into two groups, the Belleville students began passionate jury deliberations. The task of deciding which party the complex interplay of law, testimony, and evidence favored was difficult, but they treated it with enthusiasm.

“It was very well presented. That’s why we’re having a hard time,” said eleventh grader Puja Gujarathi.

In the end, the jury was evenly split and Hellerstein declared a mistrial.

david.xia@columbiaspectator.com