CARLISLE, Pa. — First-year students Stephen Howard and Nicholas Gallion took the championship round to win Dickinson Law’s 1L mock trial competition March 28 at the Old Cumberland County Courthouse. Open to all first-year Dickinson Law students, the competition drew 36 students who formed nine prosecution teams and nine defense teams, each consisting of two students.
This year’s competition was coordinated by third-year students Steven Caouette and Atusa Mozaffari — both members of Dickinson Law’s national trial team.
“Our goal was to ensure a positive, educational experience to allow the first-year students to develop advocacy skills through practice and competition,” said Caouette. “We enlisted the help of our national trial team peers to assist us with preparations and judging.”
Gallion found the competition to be a very rewarding experience. “One of the prevailing themes that I've heard during my time in law school is to never be afraid to step outside of your comfort zone,” said Gallion. “I chose to participate in the competition to do just that. I’ve always had a reserved personality. This competition provided an excellent opportunity for me to put myself in a new and challenging situation.”
“There is only so much you can learn in a classroom,” noted Howard, who chose to participate in order to make the most of his legal education. “The practical aspects of practicing law can only be learned through experience.”
All 18 teams were judged in the first round by a panel comprised of a presiding judge (a member of the national trial team), a student (also a member of the national trial team or an advanced member of advocacy or moot court), and a full-time or adjunct faculty member. The two highest-scoring prosecution and defense teams advanced to the championship round judged by Adjunct Professor Hubert Gilroy, Caouette, and Mozaffari.
“It was clear that many of the students were very serious about participating and made every attempt to get their footing in the courtroom,” noted Mozaffari. “While the relationships you build are important, it’s also really important to actually practice something. Public speaking is much different from writing, and how well you do it determines how well you connect with a jury. I give these students a lot of credit for getting out in front of their peers and faculty when they have so much more to learn and experience in the courtroom.”
Gallion said he would highly recommend this experience to future 1Ls. “I was one of the students that was certain I would never do work in a courtroom, but I didn't want to shy away from this great opportunity to see what the courtroom experience was actually like. Everyone involved with the competition — the judges, the witnesses who volunteered their time, and the opposing attorneys — was incredibly supportive."
Howard said the competition reinforced his belief in the importance of having a solid plan B. “Sometimes opposing counsel decides to approach a portion of the case from a different angle than you expected. When that happens, you need to have everything together and switch gears. The ability to think on your feet is critical.”
“You never know what you're capable of until you actually put yourself out there and try,” noted Gallion. “There is no shame in making mistakes when you're trying something for the first time. I never expected to achieve much success in this competition, but with hard work and a positive attitude you might just surprise yourself.”
Students recognized for top-ranking advocates
Top-ranking advocates were named in the competition, including prosecution advocates Chris Harris (first), Julia Jacobs (second), Ryan Cardillo and Tanner Jameson (tied for third), and defense advocates Stephen Howard (first), Erin Varley and Gilbert Ambler (tied for second), and Nick Gallion and Adam Kohn (tied for third).