Delaware Mock Trial Competition

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The Delaware Mock Trial Competition is a high school Mock Trial competition in Delaware sponsored by the Delaware Law Related Education Center (or DelREC). [1] The winning school of the state finals advances to the National High School Mock Trial Championship. The Delaware Mock Trial Competition was established in 1991, with its first competition being held in 1992. [2] The case material is usually released early in November and the competition takes place on the last Friday and Saturday in February at the Leonard L. Williams Justice Center in Wilmington, Delaware.

Contents

Typically, between 20 and 24 teams compete each year, drawing from traditional public schools, charter schools, private schools, catholic schools, and civic organizations from across the state. Since 2014, 34 Delaware High Schools (including public, charter, and private school) or affiliated organizations have competed at the State Competition. During that same time period, eight schools have sent two teams to at least one competition. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, the 2021 and 2022 competition seasons were held virtually.

Delaware has been the host site of the National High School Mock Trial Championship twice in 2008 and 2024. [3] A Delaware team has never won the National Competition but it has had one second place finish (1995) and one third place finish (2008) since it joined as a member state to the organization in 1993.

Trial Format

Opening Statements

A trial starts with a 5-minute opening statement by the Plaintiff/Prosecution (depending on whether the case is civil or criminal, respectively), which is immediately followed by a 5-minute opening statement by the defense. [4]

Witness Testimony

After opening statements, the plaintiff/prosecution calls its first witness. [5] The plaintiff/prosecution conducts a direct examination of the witness, and then defense conducts a cross examination of the same witness. After cross-examination, plaintiff/prosecution has the opportunity to conduct a redirect examination of the witness. If they do, defense is given the chance to recross the witness. [6] After either all four types of exams have been conducted or one party abstains from doing redirect or recross respectively, the witness steps down from the stand. This process is then repeated for two more plaintiff/prosecution witnesses. With the conclusion of testimony from the third plaintiff witness, the plaintiff rests. The Defense then calls three witnesses in the same manner described above for the plaintiff/prosecution.

Each team has 45 minutes for witness testimony with 25 minutes designated for direct examination and 20 minutes designated for cross examination (including redirects and recrosses conducted by counsel of that team). [7] The clock does stop, however, for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, objections and parts of the process for entering exhibits. [8] )

Closing Arguments

Once the third defense witness has finished giving testimony, the plaintiff/prosecution gives gives their closing argument. Like opening statements, closing arguments are limited to 5 minutes apiece. After plaintiff/prosecution closes, the defense gives its closing statement. After the defense goes, the plaintiff/prosecution has a chance to provide a rebuttal that is limited to the scope of the defendant's closing statement if time allows., after which the plaintiff/prosecution may offer a rebuttal. [9] Barring any disputes being raised, this marks the conclusion of the trial, and the jury is dismissed to tally points.

Scoring & Winner

Each member of the jury scores each part of the trial based on specific scoring categories, such as the flow of a direct examination or the effectiveness of a cross-examination. Each opening statement or closing argument is worth a maximum of 10 points. Each direct or cross-examination is also worth, at most, 10 points. Each witness can earn a maximum of 10 points independent of any other points from direct examination. There is one team evaluation category scored at the end of the trial, which serves as a tiebreaker. Therefore, each team can earn up to 110 points during the trial. [10]

On any juror's ballot, the team with more points is the winner of that scoresheet. Each scoresheet is worth one vote or "ballot". Whichever team receives more ballots is declared the winner of the trial. [11]

Past Cases

YearNameSubject of Case
2002State of Delaware v. Pat Hughes [12] Hazing and Negligence
2003Sandy Hills v. Midway School Board and Dale Green, Principal Midway HS [13] Freedom of speech
2005Pat Haddas v. Lou Temony [14] Negligence
2006State of Delaware v. Kinsley Williams [15] Cyberstalking
2007Aaron/Erin Wilson v. Gander's, Inc. [16] Wrongful Dismissal
2008State of Delaware v. Lin Pauling [17] Controlled substance homicide
2009A&M Records, Inc., et al. v. K.C. Jones [18] Music copyright infringement
2010State of Delaware v. Izzy Freeman [19] First-Degree Murder
2011Dakota Skyy v. Castle College and Morgan Pettigrew [20] Breach of Contract over scholarship/admissions offer
2012State of Delaware v. Les Hayes [21] First-Degree Murder
2013Jess Paxton v. Alex McMasters [22] Personal injury claim stemming from drunk driving incident
2014State of Delaware v. Cameron Paul [23] First-Degree Murder
2015First State Liability Insurance Company Inc. v. Denim N' More, Inc. [24] Insurance fraud through arson
2016State of Delaware v. Quinn Penner [25] First-Degree Murder by Police Officer
2017Creative Internet Technologies Investments v. Hayden Joyce [26] Fraud over the "Teacher's Pet" App
2018State of Delaware v. Elliot Stewart [27] Theft of six Andrew Wyeth paintings worth over $100,000
2019Mid-east Stevedores Services, Inc. v. Delaware Auto and Marine Corporation, et al. [28] Fiduciary duty to shareholders
2020State of Delaware v. Dakota Boren [29] Second-Degree Murder at a rodeo competition
2021Lilienthal Insurance, Inc. v. Natural Habitat Preserve [30] Insurance case
2022State of Delaware v. Quinn Fenwick [31] Drug delivery resulting in death
2023Estate of George Romero v. Ashley Williams [32] Wrongful death by energy drink
2024State of Delaware v. Sam Pyke [33] First-Degree Murder
2025Jean Stuart v. DE.CO Food Hall [34] Negligence in failing to exercise ordinary care in hiring and retaining employee

When Delaware has hosted the National High School Mock Trial Championship, they used the following cases:

YearNameSubject of Case
2008Mid-east Stevedores Services, Inc. v. Delaware Auto and Marine Corporation, et al. [35] Fiduciary duty to shareholders
2024Jamie Cameron and other shareholders of QuikPhone SAC I v. Bree Plaza and QuikPhone SAC I [36] Fiduciary duty to shareholders

State Finals Results

YearWinner [37] Place at Nationals [38] Runner-Up [39] Place at Nationals [40]
1992 Saint Mark's High School Not a member state Delcastle Technical High School
1993 Saint Mark's High School A-TeamNot posted Saint Mark's High School B-Team
1994 Saint Mark's High School Not posted Padua Academy
1995 Saint Mark's High School 2 William Penn High School
1996 Saint Mark's High School Not posted Ursuline Academy
1997 Padua Academy Not posted Saint Mark's High School
1998 Saint Mark's High School Not posted Padua Academy
1999 Saint Mark's High School Not posted Wilmington Friends School
2000 Wilmington Christian School 15 Wilmington Friends School
2001 Wilmington Christian School 30 Saint Mark's High School
2002 Saint Mark's High School 16 Wilmington Christian School
2003 Wilmington Christian School 27 Ursuline Academy
2004 Saint Mark's High School 22 Wilmington Christian School
2005 Wilmington Christian School 17 Charter School of Wilmington
2006 Charter School of Wilmington 21 Alexis I. duPont High School
2007 Charter School of Wilmington 23 Wilmington Friends School
2008 Charter School of Wilmington 3 Archmere Academy Attended but did not compete [41]
2009 Charter School of Wilmington 25 Wilmington Friends School
2010 Charter School of Wilmington 17 Wilmington Christian School
2011 Charter School of Wilmington 21 Wilmington Friends School
2012 Saint Mark's High School 22 Charter School of Wilmington
2013 Charter School of Wilmington 21 Saint Mark's High School
2014 Charter School of Wilmington 27 Saint Mark's High School
2015 Saint Mark's High School 12 Charter School of Wilmington
2016 Wilmington Friends School 40 Sussex Central High School
2017 Wilmington Friends School 25 Sussex Central High School
2018 Cab Calloway School of the Arts Did not attend Sussex Central High School *31 [42]
2019 Charter School of Wilmington 28 St. Elizabeth High School
2020 Cape Henlopen High School Cancelled (COVID) St. Elizabeth High School
2021 Wilmington Friends School 36 Charter School of Wilmington
2022 Wilmington Friends School 38 Archmere Academy
2023 Charter School of Wilmington 37 Wilmington Friends School
2024 Charter School of Wilmington 39 [43] Newark Charter School **21 [44]

Delaware Way Award Winners

The Delaware Way award is given each year to the team that the best exemplifies the ideals of mock trial – civility, justice, and fair play. [45]

YearWinner
2020 Sussex Central High School
2021 Mount Pleasant High School
2022 Newark Charter School
2023"Bye-Buster" Team from Salesianium and Cape Henlopen High School
2024 Charter School of Wilmington B-Team

Courtroom Artist, Courtroom Journalist, and Mock Trial Essay Winners

The artist and journalist competitions take place in the third round of the competition. The courtroom artist has to sketch during the trial and provide their work at the conclusion of the round. The courtroom journalist watched the trial and then has two hours to write a 800-word (or less) article on the proceedings. The Courtroom Artist contest was started in 2019 and the Courtroom Reporter contest was started in 2022. Due to the virtual nature of the competition in 2021 and 2022, the Courtroom Artist contest was not held.

For the Mock Trial Essay, seniors were given the prompt "How Has the Delaware High School Mock Trial Program Helped Prepare You to Become a More Effective Citizen?" prior to the competition and tasked with writing an essay between 500 and 1000 words. GE sponsored the award in 2016 and 2017 and Anthony Iannini sponsored it through 2020.

YearCourtroom Artist WinnerCourtroom Journalist WinnerMock Trial Essay Contest
2016 [46] Newark High School's River Shannon
2017 [47] Archmere Academy's Oliva D’Dwyer
2018 [48] Sussex Central's Holly Williams and Archmere's Madison Larmore
2019 [49] Wilmington Christian School's Rylee Santillo Newark Charter School's Hannah Kim
2020 [50] Archmere Academy's Lauren Wilson
2023 [51] Archmere Academy's Jace Walker Ursuline Academy's Aurey Pachuta
2024 [52] Newark Charter School's Allison MunsonNot awarded

Schools with State Finals Appearances

AppearancesTeamWinsLossesLast appearanceBest Finish at Nationals
16 Saint Mark's High School 11520152nd (1993)
15 Charter School of Wilmington 11420243rd (2008)
10 Wilmington Friends School 46202325th (2017)
7 Wilmington Christian School 43201015th (2000)
3 Padua Academy 121998Rank unavailable (1997)
3 Sussex Central High School 03201831st (2018)
2 Archmere Academy 022022
2 St. Elizabeth High School 022020
2 Ursuline Academy 022003
1 Cab Calloway School of the Arts 102018Did not attend (2018)
1 Cape Henlopen High School 102020No tournament (2020)
1 Alexis I. duPont High School 012006
1 Delcastle Technical High School 011992
1 Newark Charter School 01202421 (2024)
1 William Penn High School 011995

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References

  1. About DelREC
  2. Delaware Mock Trial Competition homepage
  3. 2024 Host Website
  4. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 4.5
  5. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 3.4
  6. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 4.22
  7. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 4.5
  8. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 4.6c
  9. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 4.5
  10. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 5.4
  11. 2023 DE Rules of Competition- Rule 5.2a
  12. "Mock Trial Examines Issues of Hazing and Negligence", St. Andrew's Magazine (Spring 2002), p 10-11
  13. Sandy Hills v. Midway School Board and Dale Green, Principal Midway High School
  14. Pat Haddas v. Lou Temony
  15. State of Delaware v. Kinsley Williams
  16. Aaron/Erin Wilson v. Gander's, Inc.
  17. State of Delaware v. Lin Pauling
  18. A&M Records, Inc., et al. v. K.C. Jones
  19. State of Delaware v. Izzy Freeman
  20. Dakota Skyy v. Castle College and Morgan Pettigrew
  21. State of Delaware v. Les Hayes
  22. Jess Paxton v. Alex McMasters
  23. State of Delaware v. Cameron Paul
  24. First State Liability Insurance Company Inc. v. Denim N' More, Inc.
  25. State of Delaware v. Quinn Penner
  26. Creative Internet Technologies Investments v. Hayden Joyce
  27. State of Delaware v. Elliot Stewart
  28. Mid-east Stevedores Services, Inc. v. Delaware Auto and Marine Corporation, et al.
  29. State of Delaware v. Dakota Boren
  30. https://web.archive.org/web/20210125073012/http://delrec.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/CORRECTED_2021-Delaware-Case-Version-1.1.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  31. State of Delaware v. Quinn Fenwick
  32. Estate of George Romero v. Ashley Williams
  33. State of Delaware v. Sam Pyke
  34. Jean Stuart v. DE.CO Food Hall
  35. Mid-east Stevedores Services, Inc. v. Delaware Auto and Marine Corporation, et al.
  36. Jamie Cameron and other shareholders of QuikPhone SAC I v. Bree Plaza and QuikPhone SAC I
  37. Championship Results
  38. National Championship Results
  39. "mock+trial" Delaware News Journal archives
  40. National Championship Results
  41. https://delawareonline.newspapers.com/image/164313200/ Wilm Charter places third in mock trials, May 11, 2008
  42. Sussex Central attended Nationals for Delaware
  43. Delaware Court release about the State Competition
  44. Delaware Court release about the National Competition
  45. Quote about award from 2023 Results Press Release
  46. Writer, Staff (2019-02-26). "Wilmington Charter Wins The 2019 Delaware High School Mock Trial Competition". First State Update. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  47. Press Release about Competition
  48. Competition Press Release
  49. "Wilmington Charter Wins the 2019 Delaware High School Mock Trial Competition". 26 February 2019.
  50. Press Release about the 2020 Competition
  51. "Wilmington Charter wins 2023 state mock trial competition", Delaware Live, February 27, 2023
  52. "Wilmington Charter goes back-to-back, ties most wins in State Mock Trial" Delaware Live, February 27, 2023