Member Directory
The High School Mock Trial program operates through the generous spirit of many individuals who volunteer their time. Volunteer opportunities range from coaching a team to evaluating or presiding during competition rounds in the spring to serving on a sub-committee behind the scenes. Without the volunteered time of the membership of the State Bar, the program would not be able to reach the 2,000+ high school students who are part of mock trial programs across the state of Georgia.
If you are interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities within the Georgia High School Mock Trial Competition, please complete and submit this short survey.
To register as a judging panelist for our competitions in February and/or March 2024, please submit the information at this link: VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION
Each team is required to have at least one Attorney Coach; many teams have multiple coaches. The Attorney Coach works directly with the students in learning the legal aspects of preparing the case, from breaking down the case, drafting openings, closing, directs and crosses, to helping them learn how to make objections and use the Rules of Evidence. While this requires the greatest commitment of time, it also provides the most interaction and direct involvement with students in the program. Teams are responsible for identifying Attorney Coaches for their team, but the Mock Trial office can assist teams in locating a coach.
Did you know? Attorney Coaches are eligible for CLE credit for their time coaching a team: 3 general CLE hours, including 1 hour in Ethics, 1 hour in Trial Practice, and 1 hour in Professionalism (3,1,1,1). Credit can be claimed by submitting the form below.
- The Attorney Coach CLE Online Form (for the 2024 HSMT season) will be sent to registered attorney coaches by the Mock Trial office in the first quarter of 2024 - Hours will be applied to the 2023 transcript.
Regional competitions will take place between February 4 and 10 (with the greatest need on Saturday the 10th); Districts on March 2 (plus one District in Jonesboro on March 3); and State Finals will be in Lawrenceville the weekend of March 22-24. New for this year: Round 1 of State Finals will be on Friday evening, March 22nd.
Attorneys and judges are used as Evaluators or Presiding Judges during the competition rounds. For each round of competition, four volunteers are needed in each courtroom (three Evaluators and one Presiding Judge).
The Regional Competition is the first level of the season, where all teams compete in three rounds at 18 locations statewide. After Round 3, the teams are ranked by their cumulative record and the top three teams from each Region move on to the District Competition.
The District Competition pairs two Regions to make a District, with three teams from each Region advancing. This level also consists of three rounds. After the third round, teams are ranked by their records from District, and the top two teams advance to the State Finals Competition.
The State Finals Competition will be held Friday through Sunday, March 22, 23 & 24 at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center in Lawrenceville. The 18 teams advancing from Districts will compete.
The State Champion will represent Georgia at the National High School Mock Trial Championship in Wilmington, Delaware in May 2024.
To register, please submit the information at this link: VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION FOR REGIONAL AND/OR DISTRICT COMPETITIONS
If you have questions about how you can help at any level of the competition, please contact Rich Harris in the Mock Trial office: richardh@gabar.org or 404-527-8779.
Did you know? CLE credit is available for attorneys and judges serving on a judging panel during the 2024 mock trial season: 1 general CLE hour, including 1 hour in Trial Practice and 1 hour in Professionalism (1,1,0,1). Members who are able to help in two different levels of the competition (Region/District/State Finals) can claim an additional 1 general CLE hour and 1 hour in Trial Practice (1,1,0,0). The process to claim the credit will be shared with volunteers after the competition levels is completed.
The Mock Trial Competition is overseen by the YLD's HSMT Committee, which includes a chair, 1st vice chair and 2nd vice chair. Subcommittees exist to work on specific aspects of the program, including Law Academy, the creation of the Problem, the Rules of the Competition, State Finals Planning Board, and Development (Fundraising). To volunteer for a subcommittee, please contact Rich Harris in the Mock Trial office: richardh@gabar.org or 404-527-8779.
This year's Chair is Virginia Josey; First Vice Chair is Faith Worley, and Second Vice Chair is Brittany Partridge.
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