Provincial Mock Trial Competition / Assumption Finishes 3rd
Provincial Mock Trial Competition / Assumption Finishes 3rd
The Assumption College School Mock Trial team traveled to Toronto for the Provincial Mock Trial Competition on April 16 and 17, where they finished with an impressive 3rd place showing. The team consisted of lawyers Abhinay Kondamreddy, Joseph Georges, Michael Tuczynski and Vincent Orsini, and witnesses Jason Almeida and Matthew Brimmer.
The provincial competition is part of Ontario’s celebration of “Law Day”. Law Day is a national event celebrating the signing of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Originated by the Canadian Bar Association (CBA) and first held in Canada in 1983, Law Day is aimed at educating and informing the public about the role and importance of the law. In Ontario, Law Day is spearheaded by the Ontario Bar Association. Activities include a grade 5 poster contest, photography contest and secondary school mock trial competition.
The regional competition was held in the Brantford courts on March 28. In preparation for the competition, Assumption was fortunate to have the assistance of two local attorneys. George Orsini and Dennis Touesnard graciously provided advice on legal matters. Assumption College School’s resource police officer, Kevin O’Neill, also shared his expertise on legal matters. The team’s hard work paid off as Assumption captured the regional title by defeating Holy Trinity of Simcoe in the final. This guaranteed both teams a spot in the provincial competition.
Eight teams, from different regions of the province, traveled to Toronto for the provincial finals. In the quarterfinal round, Assumption competed in the role of the Crown against Holy Names Catholic School from Windsor. Assumption had to react to several deviations in testimony made by Holy Names, but made a strong performance regardless and advanced to the semifinals.
The team then met the following morning in a closed room in the court to prepare for the semifinal. Assisted by staff advisors Jennifer Tunnicliffe and Carissa Weiler and student advisors Lindsay Jackowetz and Derek Vollebregt, the team was prepared to assume the role of either the Crown or the defense.
The coin toss resulted in Assumption playing the role of the defense in the semi-finals against Richmond Hill High School. Assumption once again turned in a tremendous performance, especially witnesses Brimmer and Almeida who proved to be formidable witnesses during cross-examination. The verdict came in and the accused was acquitted of all charges. The mock trial winner is not determined by the outcome of the case, however. Teams are judged on their advocacy skills. The Lions received much praise from the judges, but unfortunately Assumption was not selected to advance to the final round.
Mentor College was the eventual champion, defeating Richmond Hill in the final. Regardless of the final result, though, the team was very grateful for the experience and pleased with the overall results. Coach Jennifer Tunnicliffe was very pleased with the team’s results stating “the team has come such a long way, and it was great for the team to work together and to be able to participate in such an experience”.
The majority of the team members do not have plans to go into law, yet the experience is still very rewarding and useful in other facets of life. Said attorney Abhinay Kondamreddy “I am going to be studying nanotechnology next year, but this experience helps you in many other ways besides law, such as the public speaking component and the teamwork. I am very happy that I was able to be a part of such an experience.”
Written By: Derek Vollebregt
