Another one of the amazing clubs at OA is Mr. Gotsell’s Mock Trial Club. In Mock Trial, students compete against other schools in a statewide tournament. The state assigns you a case and you either get assigned defense or prosecution. Then you and students from another school will compete against each other in a tournament. Whoever wins the whole tournament becomes state champs. The scoring is based off a points system, like March madness, and the school with the highest amount of points advances. The tournament doesn’t start until January but the club has already started prepping with the case.
This years case is a civil suit about insurance and a breach of contract. Those who participate in the club get the days off from school to go compete in the tournament, and get to compete in courthouses in front of real lawyers and judges. Mr. Gotsell claimed the club was “a great way to develop critical thinking skills”, even for those that don’t want to go into law. He compared it to a puzzle, because you have to solve the case by putting all the pieces of the case together. The leaders right now include Hannah To, Ellen McGrath, and Zaeed Ariff. Hopefully this year goes well for Mock Trial!
For more information about the club and how to join contact Gotsell at bgotsell@easton.k12.ma.us