On Saturday 28th March 2015, fifteen of our students participated in the National Final of the Citizenship Foundation’s prestigious Bar Mock Trial competition, held this year in Edinburgh’s Court of Session. The students, who had won the South East round of the competition in November 2014, were competing against 17 other schools and colleges from across the country who had also won their regional heats.

Students took on the roles of barristers, witnesses, court officials and jurors as they prosecuted and defended two cases in front of members of the English and Scottish judiciary, who then judged their performance. The panel of judges included some very well-known names, perhaps the most well-known of whom was the Right Honorable Lord Justice Leveson, who recently led the public inquiry in to the culture of the British press. He watched our students’ perform in the first round and witnessed their victory in securing a conviction of a defendant charged with possession of cannabis. He subsequently complemented all of the students on how well they had done. After the event, A2 student Edward Behan, who played one of the barristers, commented, “having the opportunity to play a barrister in front of such a high profile judge as Leveson LJ is an incredible experience.”

The students were involved in three rounds over the course of the day, which saw them not only prosecute but also defend the case involving cannabis possession, as well as defending a client accused of burglary. Competing against three other schools, the team won all three of their cases, convincing the jury with their persuasive arguments, impressive delivery and ability to think quickly on their feet. In addition to mastering the laws of Scotland, students also had to get to grips with Scottish legal procedure!

Students Edward Behan, Sonia Mamica, James Sinclair and Jessica Cook all excelled as barristers, especially when cross-examining the opposing witnesses, in which they exhibited a calmness, yet real tenacity in their questioning. Students Louise Johns, Matthew Tyler, Shannon Crawford and Erin Cooney gave stellar performances as witnesses; all stuck to their story even in the face of tough questions from the opposition. Second year student Rhianna Perkins gave an authoritative performance as court clerk, coordinating the courtroom, whilst Lili Real convincingly acted as court macer (Scottish equivalent of an usher) calling the court to order. Our jurors, Hannah Tinsley, Asha Birly, Joanna Bright, Lauren Hall and Mollie White (who also acted as reserve barrister) all played a key role in deciding the guilt or innocence of the accused in each case.

The students even won plaudits from the judges presiding over their cases - Mr James Wolffe QC labelled their performance as, “extraordinary”, remarking that, “if the future of the criminal justice system rests in your hands, it is in very safe hands indeed!”

Reflecting on the day, students described the experience of participating in the National Final as, "rewarding" (Shannon Crawford), "exhilarating" (Lili Real), "enlightening"(Hannah Tinsley), and, "insightful" (Rhianna Perkins). Second year student Jessica Cook said, "I would definitely recommend the competition to my peers, particularly for its benefits to confidence in public speaking."

Following the event, A2 Law student Erin Cooney described the event as, “a brilliant experience - I have never enjoyed an educational trip as much as this.”

Sian Richards, Subject Leader for AS Law commented, "This really was a whole team effort in which every member of the team made a vital contribution to the outstanding overall performance, and we as teachers are immensely proud of all of their efforts."