About
MISSION STATEMENT: Wheaton College Mock Trial seeks (1) to provide an opportunity for students of all majors to develop critical thinking, analytical, and public speaking skills while becoming proficient in courtroom procedure, (2) to foster personal, professional, and spiritual growth through team competition, and (3) to glorify Christ and His Kingdom by competing with excellence and integrity.
We are a member of the American Mock Trial Association. 2020-2021 will be our tenth full season. We qualified for Opening Round Championship Series in Memphis in our first full season. In our second full season, one of our teams qualified to the 2013 National Tournament in Washington, D.C. There we finished 9th and had an attorney earn an All-American Award. In season 3 we again qualified for the National Tournament in Orlando, FL where we earned an Honorable Mention by finishing 11th and had a witness earn All American honors. Season 4 had us qualify for the National Tournament, finishing 12th and again had an attorney earn All American honors. We again qualified for the National Tournament in season 5 and had an attorney earn double-sided All American honors. Season 7 saw us qualify for the National Tournament for the fifth time in the last six years. We finished 15th in the country. We have two highly ranked teams at 47th and 210th in the country (of over 700 teams)!
Our program has multiple teams, which allows us to collaborate and hold intra-squad practice trials. Mock trial is not just for pre-law students; we have team members in majors from music to biology to political science. Some have prior mock trial experience and some are new to the competition. One of the best and most unique aspects of this program is that we are able to share our faith with our team; pre-trial prayer keeps us focused on glorifying Christ.
We are thrilled with our success so far and look forward to watching the program continue to grow!
About Mock Trial
In mock trial, teams prepare both sides of a fictional legal case, with students portraying witnesses and attorneys. Our season begins in August and can go as late as April. Preparation entails preparing opening statements, direct and cross examinations, and closing arguments in addition to analyzing each side’s strengths and weaknesses and developing a thorough understanding of the rules of evidence. Tournaments consist of four six-witness trials, each of which is scored by (at least) two evaluators. Our teams compete at a number of invitational tournaments during the fall semester to develop our skills and refine our case and in the spring semester we compete in AMTA’s national tournament series. This competition is divided into three stages: Regionals, Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS), and Nationals. This past year, over 700 teams from 400 colleges and universities participated.
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