SC Bar

High School Mock Trial

Speaking / Eye Contact

Great job.

Good job speaking on your feet. Keep up the good work.

Stand up when talking to the judge.

Give attention to projection.

Be sure to speak up and not mumble so everyone can hear you.

Be careful of getting too much of an attitude. There is a fine line.

Be very careful not to cut off the presiding judge.

Excellent job! Don’t cut the witnesses off when they are testifying. Let the witnesses compete their thoughts.

Watch your speed when speaking. You want the scoring judges to hear all of your points.

No hands in pockets when speaking.

Good job. Try not to memorize every word.

Very good. Make sure to be confident and articulate.

Be confident, but not too argumentative.

Take some deep breaths before you get started.

Don’t forget to slow down during openings and closings.

Avoid sounding scripted.

Work on eye contact with the jury and that you vary eye contact to all jurors. It makes you more credible and helps keep the jury’s attention.

Eye contact was very effective and recognized posing confidence.

Witnesses

Great job witnesses!

Witnesses are equally as important as lawyers in the competition. Points are given equally to both lawyers and witnesses, therefore much of your success is based on their testimony. Your witnesses did a great job and were very effective in scoring points.

Speak clearly on the witness stand.

Well prepared.

The witnesses were great and really elevated the level of the cases.

Witnesses need to know what side they work for.

Good job. Don’t over-do your characters. Just let them be natural.

Try to eliminate any distracting personal habits.

I thought all the witnesses were very credible and real.

Witnesses should look at the jury while testifying.

Witnesses stayed in character very well and had strong grasp of facts.

Watching witnesses swivel in the chair can be distracting to presentation.

Attorneys
Attorneys made good arguments and objections.

Direct answers to jury.

Need to work on cross. Ask leading questions on cross-examinations, not questions that begin with “why?”.

Help your witness tell the story, don’t script it.

Remember the proper gender of the witnesses.

Be sure your questions support your theory of the case. Every question should support your theory.

Know your defense and the reason for calling each witness.

Face the jury during opening and closing.

Be ready to call and cross examine all of your witnesses.

Objections were made and supported in a timely manner.

Make sure to understand the difference between “sustained” and “overruled.” 

There were good cross questions.

Good job on bringing out the negative of your witness on direct instead of letting opposing counsel pounce on it in the cross.

Don’t pace during opening.

Make sure to follow through with objections.

Very nice performances. Certainly recommend that some of the “attorneys” in today’s competition pursue careers in the legal field.

Case can be won or lost based on an attorney’s knowledge of the rules.

Learn the rules of evidences and argue objections.

Use notes less. Memorize ideas, not phrases. Should be more like a discussion than reciting a prepared statement.

Good link between facts and testimony to the elements of strict liability and negligence. Objections handled thoroughly and competently.

Don’t rely too heavily on notes; you know the material. Trust yourself.

Lay a foundation for expert witnesses.

Great overall! It was apparent that everyone worked very hard.

Be careful with flattering the jury – some may like it and some may not.

Try to avoid objecting when the witness is helping your side.

Attorneys have good grasp of the case.

Be confident. Reading causes you to stumble.

Always stand up when addressing the court. Address all objections and arguments to the court, not to opposing sides/counsel.

Listen to the witnesses’ answers. It is okay to vary your questions based on how the witness answers.

Be sure to stand away from the witness so the jury can focus in on the witness.

Stand your ground on objections. Don’t get thrown off by opposing counsel’s answers.

Opening and closing arguments were spectacular!

Don’t withdraw questions simply because there is an objection – argue.

Think about where you are going with a question before asking it, because sometimes you could set yourself up for a bad answer.

Be prepared for sustained objections and try to get in evidence other ways, if possible.

Work on objections and be careful of rules violations.

Review the impeachment process. The attorney should not quote from the record. Instead, refer the witness to the record to point out the discrepancy.

Slow down with questioning. Allow witnesses to finish answers.

Talk more about burden/damages in closings.

Make sure you prove what you say in your opening and closing.

On opening don’t walk around, never turn your back to the jury.

Try to develop a conversation style between direct attorneys and the witnesses.

Be careful when talking to co-counsel at the table as an objection was missed.

Ask closed-ended questions during cross-examinations. 

If you go into arguments and objections with confidence, then you will do well every time.

Watch stance as attorney stands in front of jury as questioning the witness. Try not placing your back to the jury.

Need better understanding of hearsay.

Remember that you can re-direct. That way the jury sees you last.

Saw a lot of confidence in questioning.

Great delivery.

Do not argue with witnesses.

Qualify experts before asking their opinion.

Great job by all who participated. I hope everyone sticks with mock trial because I saw great potential from everyone.

Exhibits

Good introduction and use of exhibits.

Remember to lay proper foundations and submit documents as exhibits.

Use the exhibits more.

You can also use your exhibits in your closing because they were put into evidence.

Bring witnesses down from the box and have them demonstrate exhibits to the jury.

Don’t publish exhibits to the jury until you have finished questioning witnesses about it.

Exhibits need to be in witnesses’ possession while questioning them about it.

Nice flow with entering evidence. 

General Comments

Nice with manners and professionalism.

Good courtroom presence.

Professionalism was great.

I commend the teams for their professionalism, poise and preparation. Congratulations to all!

Good job by everyone involved. There was good command of the materials, very concise arguments, and properly observed court familiarities.

Overall, great job for all involved. You should be commended for undertaking this task – good luck!

I was really impressed with the knowledge that both teams had about the facts and the law.

Don’t chew gum in court.

Very impressive with preparation, appearance, maturity, attitude and capability…very strong futures ahead.

Great job by the teams! The charisma, passion and preparation of the attorneys and the witnesses made the rounds fun to judge.

I commend all participants for your efforts. Whether you win or lose, the lessons you learn in mock trial will benefit you throughout life.

I admire your hard work and determination. Wear clothes that do not distract from your words. 

I was very impressed with all of the students. They were confident, made great eye contact and were good at extrapolating information from the witnesses.

You are all such fine young adults. I look forward to seeing you all one day in court.

Nice use of the experts.

I appreciate both teams preparation and general civility to each other in the courtroom. 

Good work by all and I wish you every success in your future.

The teams exhibited great presentation in trying the law and the facts of this case.

The teams have worked extremely hard. Congratulations.

Good knowledge of court procedure. Keep up the good work! I’m very impressed by your memorization and knowledge of the case. I know you will all do well in your future endeavors based upon your performances this morning.

Great enthusiasm!

Great work! 

Good luck at State!

I appreciate all the hard work getting prepared for the competition.

Don’t get discouraged….everyone makes mistakes. Keep up the good work, be encouraged and best of luck in the future.

Very impressive.

Hope to see you in the legal profession. 

Excellent job!

Each participant has earned the right to be proud!

For information about the mock trial program contact the LRE Division at lre@scbar.org, or call 803-252-5139.