Intercollegiate Trial Team
About the Team
UC Law SF has a nationally recognized Trial Team, which competes against other law schools around the country in various mock trial competitions sponsored by law schools, bar associations, and legal organizations. The competitions involve both civil and criminal topics, and members of the team compete in at least one tournament a semester.
A tournament team usually is composed of four students, two of whom represent the plaintiff or prosecution side of the topic and two of whom represent the defense. Students will give either an opening or closing statement, and will be responsible for conducting at least one direct and one cross examination. In addition, students will present and argue motions in limine before the trial begins. When one side is acting as lawyers, the other two students act as witnesses for their colleagues. A competition usually entails two or three preliminary rounds, which average about three hours in length. Most tournaments then have a semi-final and final round to determine the champion.
Fact patterns and trial materials for a given competition are distributed about seven weeks before the competition. Students work with the coaches, alumni, their individual team members and the Trial Team as a whole to prepare for the competition, and will participate in numerous practice trials in the weeks leading up to the competition.
UC Law SF pays for the travel costs (including meals and lodging) for the students participating in the tournaments. Tryouts for the team are held in April, and are open to all UC Law SF students. A student trying out for the team is given a fact pattern from a past tournament and is asked to give a closing statement and conduct a short cross examination of one of the witnesses. The student also participates in a short informational interview with the selection committee.
Trial Team members receive two units of academic credit each semester, and receive intense training in evidence, trial advocacy, and trial ethics. Students can expect to leave the Trial Team with a complete command of the nature and nuances of trial preparation and courtroom advocacy.
How to Participate
Interested in joining the UC Law SF Trial Team‎? ‎Look to the events calendar for information sessions to ‎learn about try‎-outs and our team‎ in the Spring of each academic year.
The purpose of the UC Law SF Moot Court Team is to provide students the opportunity to work in teams to increase their practical skills and knowledge of research, brief-writing, oral argument and appellate rules, standards and practice. The team is coached by appellate specialists, practitioners, alumni, and students and the cases are typically cutting-edge legal issues on appeal to the Supreme Court. The students work intensely on their advocacy skills to develop and polish their style and substance. Students complete an appellate brief and oral argument and observe their teammates’ appellate arguments.
Contact: uchsmc@uclawsf.edu
The UC Law SF Trial Team is a nationally recognized winning intercollegiate mock trial competition team, which competes against other law schools around the country in various mock trial competitions sponsored by law schools, bar associations, and legal organizations. The competitions involve both civil and criminal topics, and members of the team compete in at least one tournament a semester.
Contact: trialteam@uclawsf.edu
The purpose of SDC is to promote the interests of public speaking and oral advocacy by enhancing communication skills for argumentation and debate. All members of HSDC shall serve this purpose by studying public speaking techniques and applying those techniques to argumentation and individual speaking situations.
Contact: hsdc@uclawsf.edu
The UC Law SF Chapter of the American Association for Justice (AAJ) seeks to advance the mission of AAJ; and to connect students with the best plaintiffs’ attorneys to foster the education, skills and connections necessary for today’s students to become tomorrow’s leaders. UC Law SF AAJ hosts and attends mixers, roundtables, and leadership conferences to facilitate the transition from student to attorney.
UC Law SF AAJ is committed to economic and remedial relief for all wrongfully injured citizens. UC Law SF AAJ helps serve to utilize the civil justice system as an agent of change toward a more safe and fair society. UC Law SF AAJ provides these services and connections, in support of the skills provided by the UC Law SF Trial Team, Moot Court and Speech and Debate Club.
Providing similar opportunities to advance as a trial attorney, without the commitment of a competition based organization and focused solely on networking.
Contact: hastingsaaj@uclawsf.edu
