Frisco, Texas– For the past few months, the dedicated members of Centennial High School’s mock trial team, Titan Mock Trial, worked diligently to assemble their case for their first competition, held on January 27th. Their hard work paid off, and the team secured a spot in the semi-finals for the third consecutive year.
Titan Mock Trial, a student-led club on campus, allows members to simulate a courtroom, acting as attorneys or witnesses in fictional cases. The club proves invaluable in providing students with practical experience, whether or not they intend to pursue a career in law, by allowing them to practice public speaking and eloquently argue their perspectives.
The road to success is undoubtedly challenging; the team has to memorize countless legal terms, rules, and procedures. Aditi Kaushik, a junior at Centennial and Titan Mock Trial team member, explained, “We start off trying people out, a lot of people want to be on the team, but we only have nine spots to actively compete. We start preparing in about November because that’s when the case details come out, and we just prepare until the preliminary competition sometime in late January.”
Students selected to be attorneys spend the months leading up to the competition developing their case theory, writing persuasive opening and closing arguments, and preparing their witness questioning. Aditi noted, “You get two witnesses, one plaintiff and one defense, and based on the side that you are given, you have to prove one witness is credible and help the witness paint their perspective, but for the side the attorney is against, they have to try to discredit the witness. Usually cross questioning is where attorneys can get more aggressive, but I think I have the habit of being a little too mean,” highlighting the nuanced nature of what it means to be a Mock Trial attorney.
If witness questioning isn’t for you, Mock Trial also offers the opportunity to act as a witness in the case. Witnesses receive a testimony and have to memorize it as well as develop an accurate understanding of who that witness is and reflect it in their portrayal.
While the cases are fictional, oftentimes they draw inspiration from events relevant to modern-day culture, adding a layer of intrigue to the process. This year, the case was a complex case involving more than one element that needed to be proved.
“So this billionaire, Nano D’Sign, is a really eccentric guy who went in a submersible that suffered an electrical malfunction and lost power. He and his crewmate died, this case is loosely based on the titanic submarine explosion that happened last year, you know, with the rich billionaires who didn’t have anything better to do with their money and time,” summarized Aditi.
The team had to determine both the mental stability of the man when he wrote his will as well as who the intended recipient of the will was. While they fell short of advancing to the finals at the semi-finals on February 3rd, the team came out of the experience far from empty-handed.
Reflecting on the journey, Aditi shared, “My favorite part of mock trial is definitely the bond that’s created. Some people I met on the team my freshman year, I still hold in high regard. I’d also say I love this thrill of being in court, of being able to paint a picture in a time crunch, but also the feeling of adrenaline when going up there to speak and question.”
Despite Titan Mock Trial’s journey coming to an end for the 2023-2024 school year, the team’s experiences and lessons learned are proving to be equally valuable and fulfilling.
